Manufacturers of these stents include Boston Scientific (Taxus stent) and Cordis, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson (Cypher stent). Medicated stents are increasingly common, projected to represent 88% of all stents sold in the US in 2005.
Drug Eluting Stents have been linked to side effects such as thrombosis and severe allergic reactions.
Stents were originally developed to open arteries clogged with plaque. A treatment called angioplasty was developed whereby doctors expanded clogged arteries with tiny balloons, but about half the time the arteries re-closed.
In an attempt to solve the problem, doctors used the balloon to expand a tiny wire mesh sleeve, called a stent, inside the artery to keep it open. This helped a bit, but in 20-30% of cases, cells grew over the wire and the arteries re-closed.
The next solution was to coat the stents with a drug that prevented cell growth. These drug eluting stents (DES) cut the restenosis rate to about 5%. However, a new problem developed - by stopping cell growth, pieces of the stent could stick out of the artery and create a perfect place for a blood clot to form and cause a fatal heart attack.
The drug-coated stents have also been linked to a higher death rate due to cardiac events such as heart attack when compared to metal stents without a drug coating. The associated blood clots may occur up to thirty days after the heart stent was implanted. It is estimated that 2,000 Americans die each year due to drug eluting stents.
While allergic reactions may also occur, including pain, hives, and fever, along with difficult breathing and blood pressure issues, the law firm is interested in investigating only those cases that relate to post-stent implantation cardiac events. The strongest cases involve death with autopsy showing a blood clot inside the stent.
Washington, DC: When the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved 'Endeavor,' the drug-coated Medtronic stent earlier this year, it did so amidst a storm of controversy as to whether or not the stents promote potentially dire blood clots in heart attack patients. Drug eluting stents are still under FDA scrutiny, but as 2008 dawned there was little conclusive evidence to prove the suspicion as fact. [ 
Washington, DC: In addition to the federal investigations into the off-label marketing of drug eluting stents by Boston Scientific and Johnson & Johnson, on May 10, 2007, Rep Maurice Hinchey (D-NY), who serves on the House Appropriations Subcommittee, announced the introduction of the FDA reform bill which addresses the issue of doctors using products for unapproved uses, which usually occurs without the patient's knowledge or consent. [ 
