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Medtronic's (MDT) EV ICD Pilot Study Results Encourage

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Medtronic plc (MDT - Free Report) recently announced outcomes from a pilot study of its investigational ICD (implantable cardioverter defibrillator) system — Extravascular Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (EV ICD). Results of the study were demonstrated during a late-breaking session at Heart Rhythm 2019, the Heart Rhythm Society’s 40th Annual Scientific Sessions.

About the Medtronic EV ICD System

In this system, a lead is positioned outside the heart and veins such that it can deliver defibrillation and anti-tachycardia pacing therapy using a single device that has the same size as traditional, transvenous ICDs.

Results of the Study

The EV ICD pilot study is the first-in-human chronic (long-term) application of the investigational, first-generation system. The study proved that the system can be implanted without any risk of major complications and that it is equipped to sense, pace and defribillate the heart.

The pilot study was conducted on 21 patients who underwent the EV ICD implant procedure at four sites in New Zealand and Australia. At the time of implant, defibrillation testing was done on 19 patients. The system completely cured ventricular arrhythmias in 17 patients.More than 95% of the study’s patients achieved pacing capture. The EV ICD system also diagnosed and treated one case of ventricular tachycardia, experienced outside the hospital setting.

The study highlighted that the EV ICD system can efficiently offer the benefits of traditional, transvenous ICDs, including lifesaving defibrillation therapy; anti-tachycardia pacing to cure arrhythmias. It can provide post-shock pacing to prevent sudden cardiac death as well as temporary, back-up, bradycardia pacing to tackle abnormally slow heart rates.

Market Prospects

Per Grand View Research, the global defibrillator market size was estimated at $9.8 billion in 2016, which is anticipated to see a CAGR of more than 7.8% during the forecast period of2018-2025.

Recent Developments

Of late, Medtronic has been witnessing several developments which are expected to strengthen its cardiovascular care portfolio.

Recently, Medtronic announced the receipt of FDA approval for the Attain Stability Quad MRI SureScan left heart lead. Combined with Medtronic’s quadripolar cardiac resynchronization therapy-defibrillators (CRT-D) and -pacemakers (CRT-P), the Attain Stability Quad lead is the only active-fixation left heart lead, and is designed for precise lead placement and stability.

In April 2019, Medtronic released new data on endovascular repair of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) patients with the Endurant II/IIs stent graft system in combination with Heli-FX EndoAnchorimplants.

Around the same time, Medtronic announced five-year outcomes from the VeClose Extension Study.The study highlights durable and consistent long-term results of the Medtronic VenaSeal Closure System in treating patients with chronic venous disease.

The company also released data showcasing favorable economic outcomes for the Medtronic HeartWare HVAD System after analyzing multiple clinical studies.The analysis highlighted that heart failure patients who received treatment on the HVAD System through a less-invasive thoracotomy procedure in the LATERAL study incurred lower hospitalization and medical supply expenses than the patients on ventricular assist device (VAD).

In March, the company announced results from the landmark Worldwide Randomized Antibiotic Envelope Infection Prevention Trial (WRAP-IT). The results showed that the TYRX Absorbable Antibacterial Envelope (TYRX envelope) curbed the risk of major infection by 40% and pocket infection by 61%, in patients being treated with cardiac implantable electronic devices.

Price Performance

Over the past year, Medtronic’s stock has underperformed the industry it belongs to. The stock has rallied 2.5% versus the industry’s rise of 2.8%.

Zacks Ranks and Key Picks

Medtronic currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). A few better-ranked stocks in the broader medical space are Stryker Corporation (SYK - Free Report) , CONMED (CNMD - Free Report) and DENTSPLY SIRONA Inc. (XRAY - Free Report) , each currently carrying a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Stryker’s long-term earnings growth rate is projected at 10.1%

CONMED’s long-term earnings growth rate is expected at 13.3%.

DENTSPLY SIRONA’s long-term earnings growth rate is predicted at 11.5%.

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