By LeiraOlecra

More than 20 million Americans now are walking the streets embedded with artificial hips and knee joints, pacemakers, heart defibrillators, high-tech gear, and more. Today, about 80 thousand gadgets are being used with 4,000 new ones being approved each year and believe to be safe and effective. However there are almost 80 devices that have been yanked because of the possible fatal side effects.

Hip and Knee Replacement

In America, about 160,000 hips and 280,000 knees almost every year are being replaced by joints made of titanium and plastic. Most of these devices are manufactured by Biomet, Zimmer, Stryker, and J&J. They are proven safe and effective. But controversy may brew over the price. Based on Bernstein Research in 2006, hospitals do not know what others are paying; prices vary as much as $1,000 or 20% inflating health care costs.

Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators or ICD

A quarter of a million heart-failure patients each year are implanted with these devices made by Medtronic, Boston Scientific and St. Jude Medical. An ICD help prevents sudden cardiac death by sensing abnormal rhythms and shocking of the heart back into action with an electric jolt. There were some recalls made on the product that scared few patients, but the companies and experts pointed out that more people have died from not availing defibrillators.

Carotid Stents

Abbott, Boston Scientific, and J&J made these devices as an alternative to vascular surgery in order to prevent strokes and unclog neck arteries. Those who have tried the gadgets said it flawed while others who are used in the older techniques say it is still better.

Vagus Nerve Stimulators

Although there is not enough data to prove that this device
is effective but Cyberonics’ vagus nerve stimulator has been known and was approved to treat chronic and severe depression that can lead to suicide. For the record, as early as year 2006 more than 1,800 patients with depression have already been treated with this device.

On-Q Painbuster

This especially made pump delivers an anesthetic to an area afflicted with surgical pain thus this allows surgeon to relieve postoperative suffering with fewer narcotics applied.

Heart Stents

These are metal mesh tubes implanted every year to millions of Americans. The purpose of the device is to keep the arteries that feed the heart from closing again after a procedure called balloon angioplasty. Better and newer drug-coated versions do a better job of holding the artery open but in rare cases critics said they may cause dangerous clots.