Medtronic, Inc. and Medtronic Sofamor Danek USA, Inc. Sued for Product Liability and Promoting the Off-Label Use of Infuse(R) Bone Graft Product, According to Page ...( ATLANTA Jan. 14 /- A patient who alle...),Health

ATLANTA, Jan. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- A patient who allegedly was seriously injured by Medtronic, Inc.'s Infuse(R) Bone Graft implant in an off-label surgical procedure promoted by Medtronic has sued the company, according to James A. Dunlap Jr. & Associates LLC and Page Perry, LLC.

The firms, along with co-counsel Lieff, Cabraser, Heimann & Bernstein, LLP, filed suit in New York federal court on behalf of Paul and Susan Antonelli, of Amsterdam, N.Y. The suit alleges that Mr. Antonelli was injured during a failed January 2006 procedure at a New York hospital to fuse vertebrae in his spine.

"The Antonelli family has suffered tremendously, and Mr. Antonelli remains in agonizing pain," said James A. Dunlap, one of the attorneys representing the Antonelli family. "Because of Medtronic's wrongful conduct, many other patients like Paul Antonelli may have improperly received Medtronic's Infuse(R) Bone Graft product for an off-label use."

The Complaint alleges, among other things, that Medtronic (NYSE: MDT) improperly promoted its Infuse(R) Bone Graft product for a cervical lumbar surgery procedure, when the product was not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for that use. Infuse(R) Bone Graft product may cause severe swelling in the neck and throat that restricts breathing and can lead to suffocation of the patient if used off-label for unapproved uses, particularly spinal surgery performed from the back.

The FDA has received more than 200 reports of significant side effects resulting from off-label use of the medical device, particularly in the cervical spine, a number of which have led to serious and potentially life-threatening complications.

The lawsuit alleges that Mr. Antonelli's post-operative period was marked by increasingly severe pain, selling of the neck, men
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