GDT Guidant Corp

Patient Sues Guidant Over Flawed Heart Defibrillator, Says Hilliard & Munoz, L.L.P. CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas, July 7 /PRNewswire/ -- A Corpus Christi man has filed a lawsuit against Indianapolis-based Guidant Corp. (NYSE:GDT), claiming the company concealed a potentially life-threatening flaw in a defibrillator implanted in his chest. Louis Motal, 62, alleges the defibrillator is an older version -- with a defect that could cause it to short-circuit at any time. On one occasion, he was shocked more than five times when the device malfunctioned. Mr. Motal was implanted with his defibrillator at Corpus Christi's Bay Area Medical Center in 2001. In his suit filed July 5 in the 94th State District Court in Nueces County, Mr. Motal claims that Guidant knew the Ventak Prizm 2 Model 1861 ICD implantable defibrillator sold to him was a seriously flawed older version. The Prizm 2 model has short-circuited in 28 patients, and is associated with at least two deaths. It is one of 11 models that Guidant, under mounting pressure from the FDA, has recalled in the last few weeks. On July 1, the FDA said potential electrical flaws in these devices create "a reasonable likelihood of serious injury or death." The agency designated three of Guidant's units, including the Prizm 2 model, as "Class I" actions, the highest risk level. "When Louis received his defibrillator, Guidant had been aware of the defect for three years and was secretly trying to figure out what to do without disclosing the problem," says Bob Hilliard, Mr. Motal's attorney and name partner in Corpus Christi's Hilliard & Munoz, L.L.P. "Instead of looking out for Louis' safety, Guidant put a time bomb inside of him." Mr. Motal is asking Guidant to provide and pay for medical tests to monitor whether his defibrillator is still working and, if not, to cover the cost of having it removed. He is also seeking damages for pain and suffering. "Next time I need this thing to work, it might not," said Mr. Motal. "That's not a feeling with which I want to live. It's hard to accept that I might need surgery to fix something that Guidant could have prevented if only they were honest to begin with." The lawsuit also names as defendants Guidant Sales Corp., Guidant Puerto Rico Sales Corp. and Cardiac Pacemakers, Inc. Mr. Motal also alleges a conspiracy between the defendants. "There could be as many as 37,000 more people out there just like Louis," says Mr. Hilliard, whose law firm represents patients with claims against Guidant. "They think they have been given a life-saving device, but they could be dead wrong." Mr. Motal is seeking damages for battery, breach of fiduciary duty, products liability, breach of warranty, fraud, negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and violations of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. Contact: Alan Bentrup 800-559-4534 DATASOURCE: Hilliard & Munoz, L.L.P. CONTACT: Alan Bentrup, +1-800-559-4534, or , for Hilliard & Munoz, L.L.P.

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