Aug 29, 2000
Guidant Introduces New Technology Platform for Beating Heart Bypass Surgery

Indianapolis, Ind. and Cupertino, Calif. - Guidant Corporation (NYSE and PCX: GDT), a world leader in the development of minimally invasive technology to treat coronary artery disease, announced market release of its new ACHIEVE(tm) Off-Pump System that enables physicians to more efficiently perform off-pump, multi-vessel coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) on a beating heart. This system provides physicians with an easy-to-use set of devices for performing bypass procedures without the need to stop the patient's heart and redirect blood flow through a heart-lung machine. ACHIEVE is comprised of a stabilization platform - either mechanical or vacuum - that steadies the portion of the heart that is being treated, in addition to an access device that provides the surgeon easy exposure to otherwise difficult-to-reach vessels.

An essential part of Guidant''s ACHIEVE Off-Pump System is the new XPOSE(tm) Access Device, which is designed to securely suspend the heart during the off-pump procedure. This is designed to allow surgeons easy access to vessels on back of the heart - a step in the procedure that is required for more than 80 percent of CABG patients - without compromising cardiac functions. The XPOSE device may reduce or eliminate the need for positioning sutures, a cumbersome procedure that can lead to reduced cardiac output.

"The ACHIEVE System allows surgeons to reproducibly perform multi-vessel CABG procedures on a beating heart," said Dr. Mercedes K.C. Dullum, cardiac surgeon at the Washington Hospital Center, Washington D.C. "The XPOSE Access Device is a significant innovation, as it enables a physician to complete difficult cases involving hard-to-reach vessels on the back side of the heart."

CABG surgeries are used to bypass blockages caused by coronary atherosclerosis. Approximately 350,000 CABG procedures are performed annually in the United States. Off-pump, beating heart coronary bypass is a rapidly emerging alternative to the traditional method of performing these procedures, which requires the patient's heart to be stopped and blood pumped through the body via a heart-lung machine. When compared to procedures that require the heart to be stopped, beating heart CABG procedures have been shown to potentially result in fewer complications, including lower post-operative cognitive impairment, decreased risk of stroke and less bleeding.

First pioneered by Guidant's CardioThoracic Systems Inc. in 1996, off-pump, beating heart bypass surgeries have been performed on more than 60,000 patients using Guidant products. It is estimated that greater than 20 percent of all CABG surgeries performed in the United States are currently performed off-pump.

"We continue to believe that technology will play a key role in speeding the adoption of less invasive treatment options for patients who are undergoing cardiac surgery," said Jay Watkins, president of Guidant''s Cardiac & Vascular Surgery Group. "It is our hope that the ACHIEVE System will contribute to making the clinical benefits of off-pump surgery available to the broadest possible number of patients."

A global leader in the medical technology industry, Guidant Corporation provides innovative, minimally invasive and cost-effective products and services for the treatment of cardiovascular and vascular disease.