Heart support technologies maker Abiomed (NSDQ:ABMD) announced that its Impella heart pump cheaply and effectively improved patients’ quality of life, costing less than $39,500 per quality-of-life-year (QALY) gained for high-risk heart failure patients.

That compared favorably with the standard $100,000/QALY typically used to gauge cost-effective treatments in the U.S.. Dialysis therapies are measured by a $50,000/QALY standard.

"We are very excited about the continued expansion of compelling cost-effectiveness data for the Impella platform, which helps providers and payers navigate the evolving landscape of health care reform," Abiomed chairman, president & CEO Michael Minogue said in prepared remarks.

The data was generated by Abiomed’s PROTECT II clinical trial, a multi-center, randomized study evaluating non-emergency hemodynamic support in patients with low left ventricle function and "complex anatomy." Researchers used patients’ clinical outcomes and actual billing data, modeled out to 10 years. The study was published in the American Health & Drug Benefits journal, Abiomed announced today.

Abiomed has scored some recent wins with its Impella heart pumps, which generated $39.3 million in revenue during the company’s 4th quarter of 2013, a 22% increase year-over-year.  Full-year Impella sales jumped 31% to 140.3 million, Abiomed said.

In March the medical device maker touted expanded reimbursement coverage from a quartet of private insurers for its Impella line, including from 1 of the largest names in the industry.

In February the FDA closed a 2011 warning letter raising concerns about marketing of the Impella heart pump, causing Abiomed’s shares to recover some of the value lost after the U.S. Justice Dept. launched its probe.