Oregon researchers have found that a manufacturer’s studies of a popular spinal fusion product overstated its effectiveness and downplayed harms that include risk of cancer.
Findings by Oregon Health & Science University researchers were designed to settle questions raised over the product Infuse, manufactured by the Minnesota firm Medtronic to promote bone growth. In 2011, a journal associated with a spine surgeons’ professional group accused the firm of bankrolling “biased and corrupted” research, and estimated adverse events in as many as 50 percent of patients.
