Defective Medtronic Heart Sprint Fidelis Leads
It is frightening enough being a patient, or having a loved one with cardiac disease and other heart conditions. It can be scarier if doctors need to implant a defibrillator or use stents to assist you. At Pogust Braslow & Millrood, we understand your concerns, and represent patients and their families who have lawsuits against companies whose medical devices are or may be defective.
Defibrillators
Placed in the body to prevent cardiac arrest from severe ventricular tachycardia, a defibrillator connects a small electrode between the heart and a computer in the device to monitor a patient's heartbeat. If the defibrillator detects an arrhythmia, it activates a built-in pacemaker that will stabilize the patient's heart rate. If the pacemaker fails to stabilize the patient's heart rate, the defibrillator will send a jolt to the heart. If the defibrillator does not work, a patient can die.
Recently, medical device manufacturer Medtronic announced that it was suspending the sales of an electrical wire that connects the hearts of 235,000 patients worldwide to the defibrillators implanted in their chests because the wires may have contributed to five deaths. The company says that the wire, called a "lead," is prone to fracturing within patients' blood vessels and erroneously sending a large electrical jolt that can be uncomfortable at best. At worst, the jolt may be strong enough to have contributed to the reported deaths. An additional problem, however, is that the risk of operating to remove the wires may be more dangerous than leaving the leads in. Thus, patients are in a dangerous, no-win situation.
Previously, and in addition to discontinuing sales of the wire leads, medical device manufacturers Medtronic and Guidant had recalled thousands of defective heart devices and defibrillators. According to published reports, Medtronic and Guidant allegedly knew about the defects in their defibrillators before they were sold. Guidant has reportedly recalled 100,000 defective devices because their batteries may lose their charge, and the devices may fail if a patient experiences an arrhythmia. Medtronic has recalled approximately 65,000 of its devices because of possible short circuits, memory errors and other problems.
Drug Eluting Stents
A stent is a metal scaffold or "spring" inserted into a patient's artery in order to prevent heart attacks by assuring an adequate flow of blood to the heart. Physicians and medical researchers have discovered, however, that patients' blood vessels actually grew back over the wire mesh, causing the vessels to clog again. As a result, physicians began to use drug-eluting stents (DES), which are coated with a drug designed to discourage any new cell growth and prevent the artery walls from closing.
The problem with the drug eluting stents is that they may work too well. Not only do they block the development of new cell growth, they can also end up as a piece of metal that sticks out into the artery and can actually cause a blood clot to form, instantly blocking the artery and causing a heart attack. As a result, these life-saving devices may actually be causing additional deaths.
At Pogust Braslow & Millrood, we regularly represent patients who have been injured as the result of dangerous medical devices, including defibrillators and stents. If you or a loved one has suffered a blood clot or heart attack, or a loved one has died after having a defibrillator implanted or a stent inserted, you should immediately call the attorneys at Pogust Braslow & Millrood, where Protecting Consumers Is Our Primary Goal. We will investigate your case and work to assure that the appropriate parties are held responsible for the injuries or deaths resulting from these devices. Just fill out this form, click here to send us an email or call us at (610) 941-4204.
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