Boston Scientific Corp. reported the controlled launch of its Acurate Neo2 aortic valve system in Europe. The next-generation transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) technology extends the clinical performance of the original Acurate Neo platform and includes an expanded indication for patients with aortic stenosis.
The U.S. FDA has been easing gently down the road of real-world evidence (RWE) in regulatory decision-making, and the case of the Watchman left atrial appendage device is instructive in this regard. Robert Shipley, of Boston Scientific Corp. (BSX), said on webinar hosted by the Advanced Medical Technology Association that the FDA changed gears and agreed to a registry for a post-approval study for the first generation Watchman, but added that the use of registry data and other RWE for approval of a next-generation device is as yet more aspirational than practicable.
The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized its Medicare inpatient payment rule for fiscal 2021, and Boston Scientific Corp., of Marlborough, Mass., was perhaps a surprise winner with a new technology add-on payment (NTAP) for its Eluvia paclitaxel-coated stent for the lower limbs. The Eluvia had faltered at a previous NTAP application due to the controversy over paclitaxel in devices for the peripheral vasculature, but Boston Scientific said in a Sept. 3 press release that the decision to grant an NTAP payment “is particularly important,” given the scrutiny applied to paclitaxel’s use in these devices.
The COVID-19 pandemic has exerted a massive effect on procedure volumes across the globe, but concerns over supply chains have prompted political officials in Washington to encourage domestic production of drugs. That approach is also in play in a number of nations in the Asia-Pacific region, said Sana Siddiqui of Decision Resources Group, who noted that Beijing wants hospitals in China to ensure that 70% of devices used there are domestically manufactured by 2025.
The U.S. FDA’s effort to marry its quality systems regulations with ISO 13485 has hardly gone off without a hitch, but Melissa Torres, director of international programs at the FDA’s device center, said the agency is “very hopeful” it can publish a draft rule for that task by the end of this year.
Boston Scientific Corp. reported the U.S. launch of its Directsense technology, a tool to aid electrophysiologists in measuring tissue response to radiofrequency (RF) waves during cardiac ablation procedures. Approved by the FDA in April, the technology is available on the company’s Rhythmia HDx mapping system.
The Medicare inpatient draft is always an event due to its impact on medical technology. Now, several products soon may see their new technology add-on payments (NTAP) expire because of eligibility. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) said both Claret Medical Inc.’s Sentinel embolic protection device and Procept Biorobotics Corp.’s Aquabeam device have used up their NTAP eligibility, and hospitals may see lower rates for using those devices starting Oct. 1
Boston Scientific Corp. reported positive results for its Emblem subcutaneous implantable defibrillator (S-ICD) system and next-generation Watchman Flx left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) device at the Heart Rhythm Society scientific sessions, which were online only this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Keystone Heart Ltd., of Caesarea, Israel and Tampa, Fla., scored a win in Europe after obtaining the CE mark for the Triguard 3 cerebral embolic protection (CEP) device. It is designed to minimize the risk of cerebral damage by deflecting embolic debris away from cerebral circulation during transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) and other transcatheter heart procedures. According to the company, the device is the only product with a CE mark designed to cover and protect all three major cerebral aortic arch vessels.
