Synthetic heart graft patient reaches milestone:
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
CardioTech International says that the first recipient of its investigational synthetic coronary artery bypass graft, CardioPass, has reached the one-year mark. The female patient, who had been considered a "no option" patient because she had no usable mammary artery, received the implant in Brazil in August 2003. She is currently leading a normal life, is asymptomatic and has no cardiac pain, said the Wilmington, Massachusetts firm. Her blood pressure and EKG are also both normal. In addition, two further patients who received the implant last year are also leading normal lives. CardioPass is designed to obviate the need for vessel harvesting surgery. CardioTech estimates the annual worldwide market for the synthetic graft will be in excess of $1bn.