New peripheral artery group in Germany
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
A group of 15 German companies that specialise in peripheral artery medicine have set up their own dedicated interest group. The FBPG (Periphere Gefassmedizin) group, founded within the Berlin-based industry association BVMed, has two principal motives: ensuring that the products and procedures of this division of the medtech industry are properly represented within the diagnosis-related groups (DRGs); and setting up a treatment record for research purposes. This would entail the establishment of a prospective register of percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) procedures, which would record post-surgical observations of patients suffering from peripheral occlusive arterial disease, pre- or post-PTA. This would be done in co-operation with three medical expert societies.