Doctors advised about deaths and new stents

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a notice to doctors Wednesday about problems, including more than 60 deaths, associated with the new drug-coated stents made by Cordis Corporation, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson.

Approved by the FDA in April, the stents have been considered an improvement over bare metal stents. Both devices are used to open blocked arteries. It’s unknown whether the new device is associated with more problems than traditional stents. Read more from the FDA.