GUIDANT CASE MAY INVOLVE CRIME INQUIRY

Criminal investigators at the FDA have apparently become involved in the agency's inquiry into how Guidant handled problems with its heart devices, according to a story in The New York Times. Since June, the FDA has been looking into several issues involving Guidant, including whether it properly reported failures of some of its heart devices and manufacturing changes to correct the problems. The agency's Office of Criminal Investigations is often called upon to examine such issues.

The New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/29/business/29heart.html?ex=1128657600&en=05ee481a21a68f45&ei=5099&partner=TOPIXNEWS)