Spinal cord stimulators are surgically implanted devices that send electrical pulses to the spine to mask chronic back, leg, and nerve pain — marketed as a last resort and an alternative to long-term opioids. They are made by a handful of manufacturers, including Boston Scientific, Abbott (St. Jude), Medtronic, and Nevro. Each system depends on thin leads threaded along the spinal cord, a rechargeable battery, and wireless controls — components that patients and their surgeons say have failed in ways that caused serious injury.
Between 2016 and 2020, the FDA received more than 107,000 adverse-event reports involving spinal cord stimulators — including hundreds of patient deaths and tens of thousands of complaints of unsatisfactory pain relief — making them among the most-complained-about devices the agency tracks. Patients have reported leads that migrated out of position, devices that delivered unexpected shocks or burns, batteries that cut out mid-therapy, and neurological injuries including nerve damage and partial paralysis. A growing number of lawsuits allege the manufacturers knew their devices were failing, cleared them through a regulatory shortcut, and did not adequately warn patients or physicians — and cases are now being filed and consolidated in federal court.
If a spinal cord stimulator caused serious injury to you or someone you love, the law provides a path to accountability.
