NATICK, Mass., Nov. 30, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX) announced that, along with today's introduction of a new family of INCEPTA™ and ENERGEN™ implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) and cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillators (CRT-Ds), it is providing an extended warranty for these devices in the U.S. and many international countries of up to 10 years, depending on model.(1) The new warranty is up to five years longer than other currently marketed devices.

"Our clinical data show that the majority of patients who have ICDs live more than seven years after implant, and some live for decades," said Robert Hauser, M.D., Minneapolis Heart Institute, Abbott Northwestern Hospital.  "The excellent longevity of these devices combined with the length of the warranty has both clinical and financial implications for patients.  Greater longevity potentially reduces the number of implant surgeries, which minimizes complication risk and helps improve patient outcomes.  The warranty also reduces out-of-pocket expenses for patients as well as healthcare system costs."

"Offering the industry's longest warranty for these ICDs and CRT-Ds, in conjunction with the lifetime warranty for our ICD leads, reflects our confidence in the quality, durability and longevity of our entire device system," said Joe Fitzgerald, Senior Vice President and President of Boston Scientific's Cardiac Rhythm Management Group.  "Creating longer-lasting devices is simply the right thing to do for patients.  It benefits those who are living longer due to advances in device therapy, those who are receiving devices earlier in their lives based on our clinical science, and those who need more frequent device changes because of their clinical condition."

"We have made significant investments in advanced battery technology that now has projected device longevity of up to 10 years, far outpacing our competitors," said Mike Mahoney, President of Boston Scientific.  "We are now backing this longevity with the longest warranty in the industry to support these next-generation devices designed to save and enhance the lives of patients experiencing heart failure and sudden cardiac death."

About Boston Scientific

Boston Scientific is a worldwide developer, manufacturer and marketer of medical devices whose products are used in a broad range of interventional medical specialties.  For more information, please visit: www.bostonscientific.com.  

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.  Forward-looking statements may be identified by words like "anticipate," "expect," "project," "believe," "plan," "estimate," "intend" and similar words.  These forward-looking statements are based on our beliefs, assumptions and estimates using information available to us at the time and are not intended to be guarantees of future events or performance.  These forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements regarding new product launches, clinical trials, product performance, product warranties and their effects and competitive offerings.  If our underlying assumptions turn out to be incorrect, or if certain risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results could vary materially from the expectations and projections expressed or implied by our forward-looking statements.  These factors, in some cases, have affected and in the future (together with other factors) could affect our ability to implement our business strategy and may cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by the statements expressed in this press release.  As a result, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any of our forward-looking statements.  

Factors that may cause such differences include, among other things: future economic, competitive, reimbursement and regulatory conditions; new product introductions; demographic trends; intellectual property; litigation; financial market conditions; product performance; and, future business decisions made by us and our competitors.  All of these factors are difficult or impossible to predict accurately and many of them are beyond our control.  For a further list and description of these and other important risks and uncertainties that may affect our future operations, see Part I, Item 1A – Risk Factors in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which we may update in Part II, Item 1A – Risk Factors in Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q we have filed or will file hereafter.  We disclaim any intention or obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect any change in our expectations or in events, conditions or circumstances on which those expectations may be based, or that may affect the likelihood that actual results will differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements.  This cautionary statement is applicable to all forward-looking statements contained in this document.

(1) ENERGEN &  INCEPTA VR ICD - 10 years; ENERGEN & INCEPTA DR ICD - 8 years; ENERGEN &  INCEPTA CRT-D - 6 years.

SOURCE Boston Scientific Corporation