Medtronic takes bipolar heart failure lead to the US:
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
The US FDA has approved Medtronic's bipolar, steroid-eluting, over-the-wire left-heart lead for use with its InSync family of cardiac resynchronisation systems. The Attain 4194 lead has an angled shape and can be inserted using either a guidewire or a stylet delivery method, giving physicians an extra option to successfully manoeuvre and position the lead in a variety of difficult venous anatomies, said the company. It also has a proprietary silicone tip seal that reduces the potential for blood flow into the body of the lead, helping maintain proper pacing stimulation after the implant. Its steroid-eluting feature may help suppress inflammation of heart tissue that could cause detrimental changes in a patient's pacing threshold.