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Medtronic Heart Lead Recall | Medtronic Recall FAQ
Quick Facts on the Recall | Know Your Legal Rights
Resources and Documents | Recall Attorney Contact
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Image: Gavel  Our Promise to You

Clients represented by our firm filed the first personal injury lawsuits in the nation against Medtronic.

We have been appointed to a leadership role among plaintiffs' counsel in the litigation against Medtronic in federal court.

Our injury lawyers have years of experience successfully representing clients in personal injury cases. We provide each client with high-level individualized representation.

There is no charge or obligation for our review of your injury lawsuit.

We have retained product safety and medical experts nationwide to assist our clients with their claims.

In addition to a team of experienced lawyers, we have dedicated nurses, legal assistants and case clerks to assist our attorneys in the Medtronic recall litigation. Our firm has six full-time nurses, including ones with decades of experience working with heart patients.

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Lieff Cabraser represents persons across America injured by the Medtronic Sprint Fidelis heart lead. Click here to contact an experienced injury attorney at Lieff Cabraser for a free case evaluation. Or call us toll-free at 1-800-948-2181.

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Image: Newspaper  Medtronic News

Read excerpts from the latest news covering the Medtronic recall and lawsuits:

Read excerpts from the latest news covering the Medtronic recall and lawsuits

Lieff Cabraser had been investigating patient complaints concerning the Medtronic heart lead prior to the recall announced by Medtronic. On the same day as the recall, heart patients nationwide represented by Lieff Cabraser and co-counsel filed separate personal injury and class action lawsuits against Medtronic.

May 16, 2008
"Heart Device Patients Often Unaware of Recalls"

May 7, 2008
"Medtronic to Cut About 1,100 Jobs"

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Medtronic Heart Lead Recall
News Article Excerpt

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October 30, 2007
News Inferno.com, "Defective Medtronic Sprint Fidelis Lead Fracture Reports Ignored by Company, FDA for Months Prior to Recall"
Medtronic Inc. knew that its Sprint Fidelis Defibrillator Leads were fracturing at higher-than-usual rates for months. Yet, the company appears to have dragged its feet in getting the defective Sprint Fidelis Lead off the market. Medtronic even went so far as to blame physicians for the problems, claiming that they weren't implanting the defective Sprint Fidelis Lead properly. What's even worse, the Food & Drug Administration (FDA), which never required the defective medical device to undergo clinical testing, was oblivious to the increasing reports of Sprint Fidelis Lead problems.

Medtronic suspended sales of the Sprint Fidelis Leads in October, after receiving reports of 5 fatalities linked to lead fractures. A lead is a wire that connects an implantable defibrillator to the heart. When it breaks, the defibrillator can emit a massive and painful shock. And in the worse case scenario, the fractured lead can prevent a defibrillator from sending a necessary, lifesaving shock to the heart. Replacing a lead is not an easy procedure, as the invasive surgery can cause the tissue of the blood vessels and heart to tear. In fact, replacing a defibrillator lead is so risky that patients with Sprint Fidelis Leads are being told to leave the defective components in place unless they fracture.

The Sprint Fidelis Lead was designed to replace Medtronic's Sprint Quattro models, and it is one of the thinnest defibrillator lead wires on the market. Since it was put on the market in 2004, Sprint Fidelis Leads have been implanted with 90% of Medtronic's defibrillators. According to the Wall Street Journal, 268,000 defective Sprint Fidelis Leads have been implanted worldwide, and about 235,000 people still have these leads in their chests. But in spite of such widespread use, the FDA never required the Sprint Fidelis Leads to be tested in humans before they were marketed, and it did not monitor the device after it was introduced. The FDA considered the Sprint Fidelis Lead to be a modification over the earlier Sprint Quattro, so it only required Medtronic to conduct limited laboratory testing prior to its introduction.
  
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About Lieff Cabraser

Founded in 1972, Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP is an over fifty attorney law firm with offices in San Francisco, New York and Nashville. For the last five years, the National Law Journal has recognized Lieff Cabraser as one of the top plaintiff law firms in America.

To learn more about the advantages our lawyers offer clients in personal injury and wrongful death cases, click here.

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TRADEMARK NOTICE: "Medtronic" is a trademark of Medtronic, Inc. Lieff Cabraser is in no way affiliated with Medtronic, Inc. The use of this mark is solely for informational and product identification purposes.