Covidien plc. ( COV - Analyst Report ) , a large-cap healthcare products company, has announced the five-year results of the ClosureFAST Long-Term European Multi-Center Study. The study revealed that the company’s ClosureFAST device was successful in treating Chronic Venous Insufficiency (CVI) in the long-term.

CVI is a progressive medical condition where the veins in the lower limbs do not function normally, which leads to the formation of varicose veins. If left untreated, it might lead to severe conditions such as lower leg pain, skin damage and leg ulcerations. According to the Society for Vascular Surgery and the American Venous Forum, this is a very common disease affecting over 30 million Americans in the U.S. alone.

The multi-center study enrolled 225 patients ailing from superficial venous reflux and was conducted across 8 clinics in Europe. The five-year study observed the effects of the minimally invasive Venefit endovascular therapy to treat CVI, using the company’s ClosureFAST radiofrequency ablation catheter.

Long-term data from the ClosureFAST study demonstrated that the Venefit procedure, using the ClosureFAST device, was successful in treating patients with CVI. The positive data will likely boost the vascular products portfolio under the Medical Devices segment and reinforce Covidien’s leading position in providing innovative vascular solutions.

Neurovascular offerings from the Vascular business are significantly contributing to top-line growth, as evidenced by the year-over-year increase of 4% in the last reported quarter. We expect the favorable results of the pivotal study to influence clinicians’ decision-making and enhance procedural outcome.

However, Covidien's larger Medical Device unit overlaps the business of its competitors like Johnson & Johnson ( JNJ - Analyst Report ) , Becton, Dickinson and Company ( BDX - Analyst Report ) and CR Bard Inc. ( BCR - Analyst Report ) .

Covidien, with a market-cap of $27.45 billion, is a leading global health care products company with an impressive history of developing and manufacturing high-quality products in a cost-effective manner. The company has a well diversified product and technology portfolio.

We currently have a long-term Neutral recommendation on the stock, which carries a short-term Zacks #3 Rank (Hold).