Jul 27, 2005
Guidant Announces Chairman of Independent Panel

Robert J. Myerburg, M.D., Internationally Recognized Leader in Electrophysiology

Indianapolis, Ind. - Guidant Corporation (NYSE: GDT) today announced that Dr. Robert J. Myerburg, Professor of Medicine and Physiology at the University of Miami, has agreed to chair Guidant''s previously announced Independent Panel to recommend guidelines for enhanced surveillance of device-related events and communication of information to physicians and patients about life-sustaining implantable devices.

As Chair of the newly formed Independent Panel, Dr. Myerburg will have full responsibility to select panel members, establish the meeting agendas and content, and develop the final report. Panel member selection is currently underway.

"We are honored to have an international statesman with extraordinary leadership in the field of electrophysiology and sudden cardiac death to lead this panel," commented Ronald W. Dollens, president and CEO, Guidant Corporation. "Dr. Myerburg is widely recognized for his expertise in the clinical assessment and management of sudden cardiac death, as well as his role as an investigator in two landmark trials (MADIT and SCD-HeFT), making him an ideal choice to lead this important endeavor."

The Panel will be expected to first review and analyze, and then provide specific recommendations to Guidant Corporation as well as the broader medical device industry and public regarding four core issues defined in the formal charter of the Independent Panel.

In conformance with FDA and regulatory guidelines, and using both internal information from Guidant Corporation and other sources, the Independent Panel will examine ways that Guidant Corporation and other medical device industries can further enhance capabilities in detection and understanding the following:

• Surveillance and interpretation of low-frequency trends among life-sustaining implantable devices that may affect patient safety and physician decisions for device management.
• Reassessment of benefit and risk to patients in light of new information about marketed devices.
• Device component failure analysis and estimation of its frequency.
• Development of more transparent, understandable and clinically useful communication processes to physicians and patients, including triggers for communication, timing, and novel methods of transferring information.

"I believe that this panel will recommend clear guidelines that will have significant impact on the establishment of industry guidelines and processes for patient notification systems," said Dr. Myerburg. "I accepted the responsibility of chairing the Independent Panel because the questions that are being addressed are both specific to Guidant and of general relevance for the biomedical industry, so that the panel''s recommendations may have broad societal benefits. Guidant has been forthcoming and rigorous in guaranteeing the independence of the panel, and their willingness to share concepts of new models of evaluation and communication in the public domain is refreshing. Given the widespread use and importance of modern technologies in cardiovascular medicine today, it is important that the panel make a contribution to the entire enterprise of industry, physicians, and patients."

Dr. Myerburg completed his undergraduate and medical training at Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland, respectively. He completed his internship at the University of Maryland Hospital and then joined the military to serve two years at the U.S. Public Health Service Heart Disease Control Program. He performed his residency in internal medicine at Charity Hospital at Tulane University, followed by a Fellowship in Cardiology at Emory University. After this he became a research fellow in the Department of Pharmacology at Columbia College of P&S in New York.

Dr. Myerburg has been a cardiologist and faculty member at the University of Miami since 1970, and was appointed Professor of Medicine and Physiology in 1974. He is a board-certified electrophysiologist and served as Director of Cardiology at Miami for 31 years, from 1973 to 2004. He has been the principal investigator of multiple national studies in the area of sudden cardiac death, and authored extensive chapters and articles in this area. Throughout his career he has held multiple leadership positions in the major medical societies and national task groups, and is currently participating as a member of the active committee on ACC/AHA Practice Guidelines on Ventricular Arrhythmia and Sudden Death. He is also the current President of Cardiac Arrhythmia Research & Education Foundation (CARE).

His multiple past awards have included the Distinguished Achievement Scientific Council Award by the AHA (1991), the 8th Annual Michel Mirowski Award for Excellence in Cardiology (1996), the Distinguished Scientist Award by NASPE/HRS (2000) and recently the 2001 Distinguished Faculty Scholar Award (University of Miami).

Guidant Corporation pioneers lifesaving technology, giving an opportunity for better life today to millions of cardiac and vascular patients worldwide. The company, driven by a strong entrepreneurial culture of more than 12,000 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. For more information, visit www.guidant.com.