Smith & Nephew Recalls Certain Birmingham Hips

On July 16, London, UK-based Smith & Nephew announced the recall of 185 of its Birmingham Hip Resurfacing System implants due to a packaging mistake.

The company said the implants were packaged by a subcontractor and that different sizes of acetabular cup were mixed together. Packages were then sent to a number of countries, including the United States.

Smith & Nephew said it was in the process of notifying all hospitals and surgeons who received the implants, adding that regulatory bodies such as the United Kingdom’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency and the FDA in the United States also had been notified. The company said only a small number of batches were affected and that some of the implants already had been returned.