Abiomed (NSDQ:ABMD) today claimed a win in a German patent infringement case brought by Abbott (NYSE:ABT) subsidiary Thoratec.
The Danvers, Mass.-based heart pump maker said Germany’s highest court ruled in its favor in a patent challenge dating back to 2015. St. Jude Medical acquired Thoratec in October 2015 and was in turn acquired by Abbott for $25 billion in January 2017.
The favorable ruling on patents covering its Impella transcatheter heart assist device means a separate case, brought by Abiomed against Thoratec in 2015 in the Düsseldorf District Court over its HeartMate PHP, can proceed, the company said.
The patents cover the pigtail and insertion designs on the Abiomed device, into which the company said it put some $500 million and 20 years of research.
