When Medtronic introduced the Sprint Fidelis heart lead to the market in 2004, the company hailed it as next generation technology, a lead thinner and easier to implant than its older Sprint Quattro models. However, by  2007, Medtronic stopped selling the lead after reports the wire broke apart inside the body.

Many patients have received repetitive and devastating electrical shocks after their Sprint Fidelis lead fractured. In March 2009, Medtronic disclosed that at least 13 Sprint Fidelis patients may have died, including four patients whose deaths were related to efforts by doctors to surgically remove the product.

A key question from the beginning of the recall has been what is the failure rate of the device.  As noted in a December 29, 2009, Bloomberg article, “A report by UBS Investment Research Monday said lead failures could accelerate over time, citing independent studies that predict failure rates could hit 30 percent by four years.”

For answers to more questions about the Medtronic heart lead recall visit http://www.medtronicheartleadrecall.com. Learn also why it is necessary for Congress to adopt  the Medical Device Safety Act to restore the right of Americans with heart defibrillators, artificial valves, artificial knee and hip implants, and other medical devices to hold manufacturers of faulty products accountable.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said the recall affects more than 50 million Roman shades and roll-up blinds, which have cords that can get caught around children’s necks. CPSC said 5 children have died of strangulation and 16 others have been nearly strangled since 2006 because of the Roman shades, which pose a problem because of space between the inner cord and the shade fabric. The recall affects 25 million Roman shades.

Roll-up blinds have a large loop at the end of the cord that can strangle young children, the CPSC said, adding that 3 children have died from the roll-up blinds’ hazard since 2000. The recall affects 27 million roll-up blinds. The commission said about 5 million Roman shades and 3 million roll-up blinds are sold each year.

Read the full article on CNN.com.

The recall involves approximately 1.2 million  Stork Craft Manufacturing cribs, some sold with Fisher-Price logos,  distributed in the United States and almost one million cribs distributed in Canada. Read a copy of the CPSC recall notice. And now there is a major push to ban those types of cribs. The federal government has recalled nearly 5 million cribs in the past two years — many of them with drop down sides.

Read the full story on the MSNBC news site. Learn more about the crib recall and the legal rights of parents whose infants were injured.

“I was frankly stunned at the scope of the problem,” FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg said at a news conference Wednesday. The plan, dubbed the Safe Use Initiative, “is something that doesn’t require a new scientific discovery or a budget appropriation.”  The FDA called on doctors, other healthcare professionals and consumers to help identify drugs and circumstances that may be particular problems. The agency will hold public hearings to gather information

Read the full story on the LA Times website.

Target voluntarily recalled the toys in question, including Anima Bamboo Collection Games, Happy Giddy Gardening Tools, Kool Toyz and Sunny Patch Chairs, the agency said.

Nevertheless, after receiving what an FDA report described as “extreme,” “unusual” and persistent pressure from four NJ Democrats, agency managers overruled the scientists and approved the device for sale in December. All four legislators began their pushing within a few months of receiving significant campaign contributions from the manufacturer of the patch.

This only highlights the importance of passage of the Medical Device Safety Act, which would restore the right of patients injured by faulty medical devices to hold manufacturers accountable. The safety of millions of Americans with medical devices cannot and should not be put in the hands of one person at the FDA. The civil justice system provides an independent check and balance on corporations to ensure that their products are safe for consumer use.

With the malpractice cap set at $250,000, few attorneys will consider championing such cases, as the economics of the court system render such quests, however noble, as basically senseless and unavailing.

Read the full article on the SF Gate website.

This bill would overturn a recent Supreme Court decision granting immunity to medical device manufacturers for producing faulty products. Avery deGroh received a heart device when she was two, and due to a defect in that device, less than a year later it malfunctioned and sent numerous painful and terrifying electric shocks directly to her heart. NBC News Chicago recently profiled Avery and her family, and their effort to convince Congress to enact the Medical Device Safety Act.

Today, Mulvihill, a client of Lieff Cabraser, testified before a U.S. Senate Committee, asking for Congress to pass the Medical Device Safety Act (MDSA), legislation that would restore the right of patients to hold manufacturers of defective medical devices accountable. Learn more about the Medical Device Safety Act.