Dept. of Justice subpoenas Medtronic

St. Paul, Minn. — The U.S. Department of Justice has issued a subpoena to Fridley-based Medtronic.

The department is seeking information about unapproved uses of a Medtronic bone graft product.

Medtronic said it is complying with the subpoena, which concerns Medtronic's InFuse bone graft product, a bone growth protein approved to treat degenerative disc disease and some other conditions.

In July, regulators warned doctors the product had been linked to life-threatening complications, notably in spine repair surgeries in which it is not approved for use.

But Thrivent Financial for Lutherans analyst Dave Heupel doesn't see the subpoena signaling big trouble for Medtronic.

"It's a meaningful product for Medtronic. And it had been a real growth driver. Certainly, when you see subpoenas, it worries you. But typically these things don't amount to much. I don't think there's anything too concerning here in light of what we've seen in the past," Heupel said.

Sales of InFuse fell after the regulatory warning.