Home Page >> Complaints

My mother DIED as a direct result of the INFUSE Bone Grafts Illegal use in her spinal neck surgery on 8/30/08!!

Submitted 2008-10-03

Defendant: Medtronic\'s Infuse Bone Graft (life-threatening complications)

We were told before her surgery that this new device (the infuse bone graft) was FDA approved for her spinal neck fusion surgery and that the only side effects could be some swelling and trouble swallowing, there was NEVER any mention of LIFE THREATENING complications which could arise. On her 3rd day post-op, she complained repeatedly about having trouble breathing and was told she was just feeling like she couldnt breathe because of the swelling in her throat and that she was just fine. At one point she said to the nurse "I CAN'T BREATHE, I FEEL LIKE IM DYING" The doctor was called and relayed the same information to us that she only felt that way and he promised us she was just fine and not to worry that we could go home and get some rest. We got an emergency phone call at about 5 am that there was a little problem with my mother and they were moving her to the CCU so they could watch her more closely. When we got there the little problem turned out to be that she had stopped breathing because her throat had swollen shut and cut off her airway and we dont even know how long it took for them to discover she was suffocating!!!!! They almost could not get an airway in because of the swelling in her throat and by the time they did get her breathing again she had gone so long without oxygen that she was now in in irreversible coma with a huge anoxic brain injury. We gave her a full 5 days but it was painfully evident that she was not going to ever recover and we knew she would never want to be that way, we removed life support and she passed away after a few agonizing minutes. MY MOTHER WAS STOLEN FROM ME IF NOT MURDERED, THE DOCTOR KNEW THIS COULD HAPPEN AND NOT ONLY SAID NOTHING, HE TALKED US INTO USING THIS "GREAT NEW PRODUCT" I believe she is the first person to die from complications of this dangerous product and it needs to stop being used in "OFF LABEL" surgeries!!

-- California


* The views printed here do not necessarily represent the views of LawyersandSettlements.com but are solely the views of the author.

• Hot Legal Issues

Legal Services:

• Class Actions
• Lawyer Directory
• Free Newsletter
• Legal Careers
• Email this Page to a Friend