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Guidant Recall of Heart Defibrillators and Pacemakers
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We have represented thousands of people, including some of the largest and most important injury cases ever brought in the United States.

In the single largest damages case in the history of the world, our attorneys were selected by the Arizona Attorney General as the only Arizona law firm to represent the State against American tobacco companies. As a result, Arizona taxpayers will receive more than three billion dollars to cover the costs of treating tobacco-related illnesses, maintain educational programs to prevent young people from smoking, and fund other important State programs.

Your Legal Rights

If you or a loved one has been injured as a result of a defective Guidant heart device, you may be entitled to compensation.

You should act immediately to contact a lawyer experienced in matters involving defective medical devices.

Guidant News

Boston Scientific Recalls Some Guidant Heart Devices
Washington Post
June 26, 2006

Boston Scientific Device Woes Grow
The Boston Globe
June 23, 2006

New Guidant Warning Issued
Bloomberg News
May 16, 2006

Reviewers Cite Flaws at Guidant
The New York Times
March 21, 2006

More Guidant News Stories

$195 million settlement reached in guidant lawsuits

July 14, 2007—Boston Scientific agreed to pay $195 million to settle more than 4,000 claims alleging defects in heart defibrillators.

Guidant issued its first recall in June 2005 that eventually was expanded to include 109,000 devices. The company knew as early as June 2002 that defects in the devices posed health risks to patients.

August 31, 2005 Recall Announcement

August 31, 2005—Guidant Corporation has announced the recall of additional pacemaker models, including the Insignia and Nexus devices.

This announcement continues a long line of recalls for the heart device manufacturer. Since June 2005, the company has recalled approximately 88,000 heart defibrillators and issued warnings on 28,000 pacemakers.

Guidant also notified doctors that the failure rate of the Contak Renewal and Contak Renewal 2 was nearly triple its earlier estimates.

July 18, 2005 Recall Announcement

July 18 , 2005—Guidant Corp. revealed that problems with 28,000 implanted pacemakers may necessitate removal of the devices. Those devices are:

  • Pulsar Max II
  • Pulsar
  • Discovery
  • Meridian
  • Pulsar Max II
  • Discovery II
  • Virtus Plus II
  • Intelis II
  • Contak TR
June 24, 2005 Recall Announcement

June 24 , 2005—Guidant Corporation extended its earlier recall to cover the Contak Renewal 3 and 4, Renewal 3 and 4 AVT, and Renewal RF.

This recall announcement marks the second warning in as many weeks from Guidant Corp. involving its heart devices. The company earlier warned physicians and patients that other defibrillator models may require removal.

June 17, 2005 Recall Announcement

June 17 , 2005—Guidant Corporation announced a recall of nearly 50,000 heart defibrillator medical devices, including the Ventak Prizm 2 DR, Contak Renewal 1 and 2, Ventak Prizm AVT, Vitality AVT, and Renewal 3 and 4 AVT.

Guidant has indicated it would replace approximately 28,900 of the devices already implanted in patients. An additional 21,000 devices can be corrected by external reprogramming.

The subject devices are attributed to at least 45 failures, including seven deaths.

Patients who have been implanted with one of the devices are urged to consult their physician to discuss the benefits and risks of removing the potentially defective devices.

Guidant Earlier Warned of Problems in Ventak Prizm 2 Defibrillators
Company Continued Selling Device After it Became Aware of Defects
guidant corp

In April 2005, Guidant Corp. informed doctors than an electrical flaw in its Ventak Prizm 2 DR led to a number of failures. The problem caused some devices to short-circuit, rendering them inoperable.

Although the company years before had redesigned the device to correct for the problem, the company continued selling the original defective device. Guidant justified this decision by claiming that the original device still was reliable.

The Justice Department is now pressing for documents that indicate Guidant executives conspired to continue selling certain defibrillators it knew to be defective. The Justice Department initiated a probe of the company to investigate wrongdoing in the handling of its defective defibrillators.

What You Should Do
guidant lawyers Your Health
If you or a loved one has been implanted with one of the Guidant defibrillators or pacemakers subject to recall, promptly consult your physician for an evaluation.
Our Lawyers Can Help

O'Steen & Harrison, PLC presently is handling legal claims on behalf of those injured by defective Guidant heart devices. We invite you to contact us for a free, confidential consultation about your legal rights.

We represent patients throughout the United States. We can help you, too, wherever you live.

For free answers to your questions about the Guidant recall, please call us toll-free at 1-800-883-8888 or complete this online contact form.