A Fremont man has filed a class-action lawsuit against Medtronic Inc., a Minnesota-based medical technology company whose defibrillator wires for heart patients were recalled in October. In a complaint filed in a San Francisco federal court late last month, plaintiff Rashid Hunter alleged that four types of wires, or leads, sold under the Sprint Fidelis label were prone to bending or kinking.

Implantable cardiac defibrillators can slow down or speed up a patient's heart rate, with the aid of electrodes built into wires that sense the heart's rhythm. Defective wires could lead to unnecessary shocks or failure to shock when needed, causing injury or death, the suit states. Hunter is seeking compensation for himself and all Californians affected by the Sprint Fidelis wires -- a number that could reach into the thousands, according to the suit."I live in constant fear, wondering if my lead will malfunction and kill or cause me severe pain as it has done to others," Hunter said in a statement.

The plaintiff is seeking a court order to have Medtronic pay for a monitoring program and future medical expenses incurred by affected California patients as a result of the faulty leads. Patients who are considered party to the suit are those with the following implanted Sprint Fidelis models: the 6949 LFJ extendable/retractable screw fixation; the 6948 LFH tuned fixation; the 6931 LFT S fixation; and the 6930 LFK T fixation. Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein LLP, a law firm with offices in San Francisco, New York and Nashville, is representing the plaintiff.

For more information, visit http://www.medtronicheartleadrecall.com or http://www.medtronic.com/fidelis/index.html.