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July 03, 2008
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Products Liability
Medtronic Inc. Sued Over Defibrillator Design
November 15, 2007
When Medtronic Inc. recalled the wires that were part of its ICD, a device that "shocks" the heart to control a racing heart beat, the company must have known it would face a barrage of law suits. After all, the day after the recall, a consumer rights group, Public Citizen had claimed that the number of injuries resulting from the faulty wires known as leads, had jumped dramatically in 2007, and yet Medtronic hadn't done anything to warn patients who had the device implanted or acted immediately to pull the faulty wires off the market. Medtronic itself admitted that its faulty wires were responsible for the deaths of at least five patients who had been fitted with the device. These deaths and injuries were reportedly caused by a malfunction that caused the wires to fracture resulting in either increased shock to the heart or no shock at all. As could be expected, two class action lawsuits have been filed against Medtronic Inc., both in Kansas City courts. The lawsuits filed by a Kansas City resident and a Johnson County resident claim that the company showed negligence in its design of the wires known as SprintFidelis. According to the Kansas City Star, each lawsuit has at least six counts, including negligence and failure to warn patients of the possible malfunctioning of the wires. Both patients received their device implantation in Kansas, one at the University of Kansas Hospital and the other at the Menorah Medical Center. The hospitals themselves haven't been named in the lawsuits. Medtronic Inc. controls half of the global market for ICDs. If you've been injured as a result of a defective product such as the leads in Medtronic Inc.'s ICDs, you might be entitled to compensation. Contact the California personal injury lawyers at The Reeves Law Group for a free consultation.
Increase in Medtronic Heart Device Injuries
November 01, 2007
A day after the recall of the tiny wires used in Medtronic's heart device, the consumer group Public Citizen claimed that patient injuries as a result of the use of the wires had increased dramatically in 2007. According to FDA data, the number of injuries related to the heart device wires was 1194 in the first 10 months of 2007, compared with 296 in 2006. The wires called "leads" that link the heart to the ICD, a device that administers shock to the heart to control a racing heart beat, were also suspected to have been the cause of at least five deaths related to its use. Public Citizen claims that instances of injuries began increasing in the early months of 2007. Patients were reported to be suffering from inappropriate shock. On October 15, Medtronic recalled its Sprint Fidelis line of leads after they were connected to five deaths. Fracture of the wires was believed to have been the cause of the injuries. Meanwhile the FDA insisted there was nothing in this line of leads to indicate there was anything different from other products that worked perfectly well and were manufactured by the same company. Public Citizen however isn't impressed. Why, they ask, did the FDA not act to force the company to pull these defibrillators off the market in the beginning of the year when it became clear they were responsible for a staggering number of injuries? At the very least, it would have prevented a number of injuries and a lot of stress and worry on the part of patients and their families could have been avoided. Medtronic insists the benefits of the leads far outweigh the risks. The reason for this could lie in the fact that the company controls half of the global market for ICDs. When a person has been injured due to a defective product, the victim may be eligible for compensation. If you or you loved ones have been injured as the result of using a defective product, consult the experienced California personal injury lawyers at The Reeves Law Group immediately.
