Submit your Product Liability claim details for a free, no obligation case review
Get Started:
Medtronic Inc. is the largest maker of implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) and pacemakers. Joining the second and third largest manufacturers of ICDs to also issue recalls or safety warnings, Medtronic announced in February 2005 that certain implantable cardioverter defibrillator models and cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillator models may have a potential battery shorting mechanism that could cause the devices to fail.
Affected Medtronic defective defibrillators included devices with batteries manufactured between April 2001 and December 2003. The battery-shorting problem, according to the company, could cause the batteries to become rapidly depleted, sometimes within hours or days. Once the battery becomes depleted, patients with the Medtronic defective defibrillators risk the device no longer functioning.
The Medtronic defective defibrillators affected by the safety warning included the subset of the Marquis VR/DR and Maximo VR/DR ICDs and the InSync I/II/III Marquis and InSync III Protect CRT-D lines. The company began notifying physicians about the Medtronic defective defibrillators on February 10, 2005, providing them with a list of potentially affected patients and recommending physicians speak with those patients about their options while closely monitoring them.
Medtronic defective defibrillators date back to 2003, when Medtronic first detected a battery malfunction in certain device models during internal quality testing. After identifying the electrical shorting mechanism, the company made modifications to the battery to correct it. Battery redesigns for Medtronic defective defibrillators were later FDA approved.
Problems among patients who had received devices containing the defective batteries were first reported in the spring of 2004, after a failed ICD that had been removed from a patient was returned to the company for analysis. Physicians discovered six of the nine reported failed batteries because of Medtronic defective defibrillators during patient visits.
At the end of February 2005, Medtronic also announced it was voluntarily recalling a limited number of Lifepak 500 automated external defibrillators because the device may continue to display a “connect electrodes” message, failing to analyze the patient’s heart rhythm even when the electrodes are properly connected. Medtronic said it received 54 incident reports with the specific group of devices. The FDA classified the recall a Class I recall, meaning there was a situation in which reasonable probability that the use of or exposure to the product would cause serious adverse health consequences or death.
Contact a Medtronic lawyer for more information on the Medtronic defibrillator recall.
Medtronic, the world’s largest maker of implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs), has agreed to settle 2,682 product liability lawsuits for $95.6 million.
Marquis ICDs
The lawsuits were filed in connection ...
The Supreme Court heard arguments in a controversial case involving a defective heart catheter made by Medtronic on Tuesday. At issue is whether or not the manufacturer can be held liable under state law for the plaintiff’s injuries since the dev...
A vital wire in certain implanted heart devices may falter and cause serious injury, possibly even death, according to an announcement made by the Food and Drug Administration on Monday. The defect has prompted the maker of the part to issue a voluntar...
Copyright © 2001 - 2009 Online Lawyer Source | Legal Marketing Site Designed by eJustice