Portable defibrillators seem so commonplace these days that people in danger of heart failure can buy one online for about $1,200. But the two-decade movement to make the life-saving devices as handy as fire extinguishers is all but flatlining.
Some analysts say the explosive growth that triggered a corporate frenzy of competition, innovation and dizzying mergers has been hindered by suspect quality control and machine malfunctions, which have led to the recalls of millions of the devices and hundreds of deaths-by-glitch.
