Mar 12, 2002
Guidant Moves Advanced Patient Management Initiative Forward with CardioNet Investment

Wireless Telecommunication will Enable Internet Monitoring of Patients

Indianapolis, IN - Guidant Corporation (NYSE and PCX: GDT), a world leader in the treatment of cardiovascular and vascular disease, today announced that it has made a $5 million investment in CardioNet, Inc. Based in San Diego, CardioNet is an integrated medical technologies and services company involved with cardiac arrhythmia patient ambulatory monitoring.

"Guidant's investment in CardioNet is part of our ongoing commitment to the highest quality patient care, and our strategy to leverage core competencies to create new market opportunities," said Fred McCoy, president, Cardiac Rhythm Management, Guidant Corporation. "Guidant is currently engaged in full-scale development of products and services for our Advanced Patient Management initiative, and welcomes this key strategic partnership."

CardioNet's unique capabilities blend external ambulatory electrocardiogram technology with wireless telecommunications to enable remote, real-time cardiac patient monitoring via the Internet. CardioNet technology potentially allows early identification of patients who may be candidates for Guidant therapies. The CardioNet service model holds considerable promise to further advance patient care in a cost-effective way.

The Advanced Patient Management(tm) initiative is a visionary approach to continuously monitor patients with chronic heart diseases. Guidant is developing products to offer physicians the ability to monitor patient heart function remotely and automatically. Our efforts are designed to integrate the latest Internet-based information technology and telecommunication advancements with Guidant's world-class implanted medical device technologies. The Advanced Patient Management initiative will enable physicians to provide better patient care with more timely diagnosis and treatment-all accomplished remotely in the convenience of a patient's home. This real-time monitoring will likely lead to more cost-effective medical care by decreasing the number of hospital and physician visits. Likewise, Advanced Patient Management holds the promise of improving patient and patient family convenience while improving clinician productivity.

As part of the partnership with CardioNet, Guidant has exclusive co-branding rights among medical device manufacturers. In addition to this exclusivity, Guidant will be represented on CardioNet's board of directors by Fred McCoy, president, Cardiac Rhythm Management, Guidant Corporation.

CardioNet's mission is to develop products and services that help physicians provide better care for patients with cardiovascular disease-merging cardiac monitoring, wireless, and Internet technologies.

Guidant Corporation pioneers lifesaving technology, giving an opportunity for better life today to 7 million cardiac and vascular patients worldwide. The company, driven by a strong entrepreneurial culture of 10,000 employees, develops, manufactures and markets a broad array of products and services that enable less invasive care for some of life's most threatening medical conditions.