Medtronic Paid Surgeon While He Was in the Army

Medtronic has acknowledged that it paid a former Army surgeon, who is now accused of falsifying research about one of its products, to give speeches and train other doctors on the company’s behalf while he was in the military.

The disclosure, made this week as Medtronic sought to clarify comments by its chief executive, shows that the financial entanglements between Medtronic and the surgeon, Dr. Timothy R. Kuklo, were more extensive than previously acknowledged.

Army officials have accused Dr. Kuklo of falsifying research about the benefits of a Medtronic bone-growth product called Infuse in treating American soldiers who suffered severe leg injuries in Iraq. Until mid-2006, Dr. Kuklo, an orthopedic surgeon, worked at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington.

Dr. Kuklo, now an associate professor of medicine at Washington University in St. Louis, has declined requests to speak about the incident, which has drawn increasing attention over the last month. Medtronic, which says it was not involved in the discredited research study, has only gradually disclosed the extent of its financial ties to Dr. Kuklo.