Medtronic sued over faulty defibrillator parts

Medical device maker Medtronic has been sued over alleged malfunctions in the leads for its defibrillators, which plaintiffs say gave them unnecessary shocks.  Plaintiffs Leonard Stavish and Kelly Luisi are seeking class-action status for their suit, which asserts that Stavish got 47 unnecessary charges and that Luisi needed additional surgery to remove the device.

The suit comes within a day of the company announcing that it would voluntarily suspend distribution of such leads, which may have contributed to five deaths to date. The defibrillator in question, the Sprint Fidelis, has been implanted in 235,000 patients to date.

To learn more about the case:
- read this Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal piece

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