Two of the most common implant surgeries today are breast implants and heart defibrillators.
Breast implant surgery has become one of the more popular types of reconstructive and body augmentation surgery. Two types of implant devices are used, silicone breast implants and saline breast implants.
Silicone breast implants have been suspected of causing cancer, autoimmune disorders and other ailments since the late 1980s. Many women complain of chronic headaches and fatigue, pain in muscles and joints, rashes and hair loss that they claim are caused by silicone breast implants.
In several high profile lawsuits, silicone implant manufacturers like Dow Corning were accused of marketing the breast implants with knowledge of these injuries. The FDA has since restricted the use of silicone implants.
If you were recipient of a Dow Implant but have not received a settlement, contact the skilled Cincinnati medical malpractice attorneys of O’Connor Acciani & Levy Co., LPA as soon as possible. Call us toll free at (877) 288-3241 for a FREE evaluation of your case by an experienced personal injury attorney.
Guidant Heart Defibrillators
On April 12, 2007, heart defibrillator manufacturer Guidant, in conjunction with the FDA issued a Class I (urgent) defibrillator recall due to faulty capacitors draining defibrillator batteries. This recall affects about 73,000 devices and includes the following models:
- Guidant Prizm 2 DR
- Guidant Contak Renewal and Contak Renewal 2
- Guidant Ventak Prizm AVT
- Guidant Vitality AVT
- Guidant Renewal 3 AVT and Renewal 4 AVT ICDs
Within the past five years, Guidant has recalled thousands of defibrillators due to a short circuit problem and capacitor malfunctions similar to this months recall.
Guidant heart defibrillators are electronic devices implanted in patients at risk of heart disease, that regulate erratic heartbeats with tiny electric currents. In earlier models, wiring errors may short circuit the device, causing malfunctions that may seriously injure the patient.
To reduce the risk of malfunction, have your doctor service these three models: Guidant Prizm AVT, Vitality AVT and Renewal AVT. The other two pacemakers in this recall, Prizm 2 DR and Contak Renewal, must be replaced in order to remove the risk of defibrillator heart attack.
Consult your doctor and schedule three month checkups to ensure that your device is working properly, particularly if you are at high risk of defibrillator heart attack.
If you or someone you know has a Guidant heart defibrillator implanted, please contact an injury lawyer Cincinnati at the personal injury law firm of O’Connor Acciani & Levy Co., LPA by calling us at (877) 288-3241 to submit your potential claim.