When Guidant Corporation announced a recall of nine of its popular cardiac pacemakers on July 18 th, 2005, it included a large number of the Discovery models. These devices belong to a group of 28,000 other models manufactured between 1997 and 2000 of which there have been 69 reports of failure. These failures include 20 losses of pacing output, 5 syncopes (fainting), and possibly one fatality.

The reason for the recall derived from a failure in the seal around the unit. This seal failed to prevent moisture from entering the unit which caused the delicate electronic systems inside to malfunction and fail to properly deliver need therapy. Understandably, the inability of the device to regulate heartbeat is rather distressing for the patient with the pacemaker.

Patients who have a Discovery pacemaker model numbers 1174, 1175, 1273, 1274 or 1275 should consult their medical professionals immediately if they experience light headedness, dizziness, or shortness of breath. Additional signs of pacemaker failure include:

• Premature battery drain
• Inadequate pacing
• Early appearance of reset warning
• Advanced replacement indications

Other pacemaker lines affected by the recall include the following Guidant models:

Pulsar Max | Pulsar | Discover II | Meridian | Virtus Plus II | Intelis II | Contak TR | Pulsar Max II

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