Medical Implant Makers Warn of Cut Off in Supplies

Some major manufacturers of materials used to make heart valves, artificial blood vessels and other implants have been warning medical equipment companies that they will be cutting off supplies because they fear lawsuits, a published report said.

The new policies have not forced important products from the market, but implant companies are struggling to find other suppliers, the New York Times said in today’s editions.

“We’ve approached more than 15 polyester makers in the United States and Europe, but the best response we’ve had so far has been a few people willing to give us samples to test with no commitment to supply,” said Dennis Genito, vice president of product surveillance at Medox Medicals Inc., an Oakland, N.J., manufacturer of artificial blood vessels.

Doctors and industry executives said that the trend could end up making some needed implants hard to get and devastate the development of new ones.

The manufacturers, which include Dow Chemical Co. and E.I. du Pont de Nemours, are getting out of the medical business because they fear being dragged into consumer lawsuits against implant makers.

Suppliers have been named in hundreds of lawsuits involving such things as silicone breast implants and jaw implants.

Consumer advocates said the manufacturers are dropping out of the medical supply business in an attempt to pressure Congress to limit legal redress available to people injured by faulty products.