FDA investigates artificial heart compressor failure that may have led to man’s death
Officials at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles said they believe a 57-year old man who had an artificial heart implanted at their hospital may have died due to failure of a portable compressor, Kaiser Health News reports.
The FDA is investigating problem with the Freedom portable driver, a compressor which is manufactured by SynCardia Systems, LLC. Cedars-Sinai readmitted two other patients who were sent home with the compressor, according to the report.
An FDA spokeswoman told Kaiser Health News that the issues with the Freedom portable driver occurred in more than one hospital.
In September 2015, the FDA issued a class I recall of 29 Freedom portable drivers. On Sept. 20, Versa Capital Management, LLC acquired SynCardia, which had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this year.
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Executive Editor
Tim Casey joined TriMed Media Group in 2015 as Executive Editor. For the previous four years, he worked as an editor and writer for HMP Communications, primarily focused on covering managed care issues and reporting from medical and health care conferences. He was also a staff reporter at the Sacramento Bee for more than four years covering professional, college and high school sports. He earned his undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Notre Dame and his MBA degree from Georgetown University.