Defibrillators Buried with Patients

Why is it so hard to convict a doctor of malfeasance? Because they bury all the evidence. Har Har…It appears that tired old joke might also carry over to manufacturers of implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs). Apparently, research recently presented at the American Heart Association meeting in Chicago points out that too few of the devices are going back to manufacturers for analysis…

High-profile recalls of defective devices have raised awareness of ICD safety, but researchers said they do not know the true rate of malfunction because the devices are not routinely checked after death.
Kirkpatrick [Dr. James Kirkpatrick of the University of Pennsylvania, presenter of these data – ed.] said most devices now are buried with patients. Of those that are removed, 44 percent are disposed of as medical waste, while 22 percent are donated for animal use or for human use in developing nations.
The survey found that most of the 100 morticians surveyed (87 percent) would be willing to return the devices to manufacturers for analysis. Of the 160 ICD patients questioned, 82 percent said they would give their consent.

At least a few of the devices are being re-used for some good. Hard to imagine that failed devices aren’t required to be sent back for analysis. Or maybe this is just referring to devices that weren’t the cause of death?
We’d link you to the article, but this was only a conference presentation, so we’ll send you to Reuters…