Medtronic’s recall of its Sprint Fidelis defibrillator lead potentially affects 235,000 people. According to reports, approximately 2,000 of them are under the age of 21 and may be at greater risk than adults implanted with the same product.

Why younger patients are at greater risk

According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, the leads that attach a defibrillator device (used to shock the heart into a normal rhythm) tend to “come under greater stress in more active people, including kids, adolescents and younger adults.”

The recall has placed a great emphasis on the fact that some of the Fidelis leads can fracture and cause the defibrillator to shock the heart unnecessarily (some patients have reported being shocked dozens of times without cause) or to fail in shocking the heart when needed.

According to data released by the company, the Sprint Fidelis failure rate was higher, 3.8%, in patients under the age of 21 than for the entire population, which had a failure rate of 2.3%. Younger adults and children are also at a greater risk because their heart beats faster and may place more stress on the leads that are attached to their hearts.

What the blogs are saying

Numerous writers, some patients and some parents of patients, are reporting their stories on blogs (short for ‘web-log’, a blog is a frequent, chronological publication of personal thoughts and web links). Many report being shocked and scared by the recall. However, many, many more report being angry that information that these leads may be defective has been known for at least six months now and they were not informed.

What Medtronic is doing

Medtronic has said that it will pay to replace any defective leads. Patients should see their doctors immediately to see if they have a lead that might be defective. The defective leads have the following identification numbers: 6930, 6931, 6948 and 6949. For additional information, see the company’s website at: http://www.medtronic.com/fidelis/

Seek legal advice

If you have a defective Medtronic lead, contact an attorney who will review your situation. According to a prominent attorney in New York, most attorneys are paid on a contingency basis for these types of cases, which generally means that they only get paid if you get paid. He explained what consumers / patients should look for when seeking an attorney for representation in these matters:

First and foremost, you look for someone with experience. You should also look for a firm that has been at the forefront of mass tort litigation, knows how to handle multi-district litigations, knows how to coordinate with other plaintiff counsel and knows how to deal with these companies on this sort of level. A lawyer who is experienced in litigating, bringing cases to trial and successfully negotiating settlements is always your best bet.

To contact an attorney near you, click here.