Abbott announced that the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) has approved its XIENCE V (R) Everolimus Eluting Coronary Stent System for the treatment of coronary artery disease. Japan is the second largest drug eluting stent market in the world after the United States, with approximately 200,000 stent procedures performed each year. The company plans to launch XIENCE V in Japan in the upcoming weeks, immediately following final reimbursement authorization.

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Boston Scientific Corporation has announced that it has received CE Mark for its PROMUS® Element(TM) Everolimus-Eluting Coronary Stent System, the Company’s third-generation drug-eluting stent (DES) technology. The PROMUS Element system incorporates a unique platinum chromium alloy with an innovative stent design and an advanced catheter delivery system. The Company will begin marketing the PROMUS Element system immediately in the European Union and other CE Mark countries.

Onset Medical Corporation has announced that it has received U.S. FDA 510(k) marketing clearance for the Company’s SoloPath™ TransFemoral Endovascular Access Catheter. These catheters are designed to provide access to diseased arteries at a relatively small catheter size and then be expanded to provide a conduit for the delivery of larger diameter devices. Another clinical market for the SoloPath Catheter is in the delivery of stent grafts for the treating aortic aneurysms.

Boston Scientific Corp has received approval from the FDA to market its new WallFlex Biliary RX covered stents. The stents are designed to treat clogged bile ducts in cancer patients. The liver excretes bile, which the body uses to help digest food. The WallFlex Biliary RX uncovered stent was cleared by the FDA in 2006. The new covered version of the stents was also approved by European regulators.

The Johnson & Johnson subsidiary, Cordis, wins a nod from the FDA for its 2.25mm Cypher drug-eluting stent for treating blockages in small blood vessels. The company said data from the RESEARCH and T-SEARCH studies indicated that patients treated with the small Cypher model had a 65% lower incidence of death or heart attack than patients treated with the 2.25mm Boston Scientific device.

Angiotech Pharmaceuticals Inc and Cook Medical’s Zilver PTX drug-coated stent has received approval for use in the European Union (EU). The device is used to prevent blockage of the superficial femoral artery, which is the main blood vessel in the thigh. The use of the stent has already started in patients.

Boston Scientific has received the FDA approval to market its Taxus Liberte long paclitaxel-eluting coronary stent system, a next-generation drug-eluting stent designed for long lesions. At 38mm, Taxus Liberte long stent is the longest available drug-eluting stent (DES). This provides doctors with an option that can potentially reduce the number of stents used in more complex cases, simplifying procedures and reducing costs. The company plans to launch the product in the US in August.

Daiichi Sankyo Inc and Eli Lilly received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Effient (prasugrel) tablets to be used for the reduction of thrombotic cardiovascular events. Effient reduces thrombotic cardiovascular events (including stent thrombosis) in patients suffering from acutecoronary syndromes and undergoing an artery-opening procedure known as percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). PCI usually includes the placement of a stent to help keep the artery open.

Medtronic has announced the U.S. launch of the Talent Abdominal Stent Graft on the Xcelerant Hydro Delivery System. EVAR is a treatment for aortic aneurysm, a bulge or weakening in the body’s main artery that can rupture with fatal consequences if left untreated. EVAR involves the navigation of a stent graft, via the body’s arteries, to the aorta. The stent graft is then deployed to create a tube within the aorta, reducing pressure on the aneurysm and the risk of rupture. EVAR is a minimally-invasive alternative to open surgical repair.

Medtronic, Inc. has launched the Endeavor Sprint drug eluting stent (DES) on a rapid exchange (RX) delivery system in the U.S. The Endeavor Sprint system uses Sprinter ™ balloon catheter technology. The system puts the highly deliverable Endeavor DES on an enhanced delivery platform. This makes Medtronic’s flagship DES even easier for physicians to deliver to the site of coronary blockages. The Endeavor Sprint drug eluting stent system is the latest innovation to come out of our robust product pipeline in CardioVascular.