Friday, June 19, 2009
Timothy Kuklo (photo: Washington University)
Medtronic, already under investigation by the Justice Department and Congress for allegedly using illegal marketing practices to promote their Infuse Bone Graft, has admitted to making $788,280 in direct payments and about $64,000 in expense payments to a former military doctor accused of falsifying a medical journal study involving the same bone-growth treatment.
Dr. Timothy R. Kuklo claimed in a study published by The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery that Infuse was effective in treating leg injuries suffered by American soldiers in Iraq. An U.S. Army investigation found that Kuklo had forged the names of four other doctors on the study and cited data that conflicted with military records. Other military doctors said Kuklo had also overstated the benefits of the Medtronic product. The journal publicly withdrew the paper.
Medtronic claims it had nothing to do with Kuklo’s actions.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
$788,000 Paid to Doctor Accused of Faking Study (by Barry Meier, New York Times)
Million Dollar Baby: army Colonel Timothy Kuklo [ret] and Pay to Fake Scheme (by Peter N. Kirstein)
Withdrawal of a Paper (editorial, Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery)
Medtronic’s Infuse Bone Graft Linked to Life-Threatening Complications (LawyersandSettlements.com)
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