Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) said yesterday that a U.K. healthcare agency backed its EnduraLife batteries for cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillators, citing the savings offering by reduced replacement procedures.
The guidance from Great Britain’s National Institute for Health & Care Excellence concluded that the EnduraLife technology would improve outcomes and create some $7.4 million (£6 million) in savings over 5 years, Boston Scientific said.
The NICE evaluation calculated that avoiding early replacement procedures would pare costs such as hospital admissions, bed days and procurement costs and lower the rates of post-procedure complication and infection. The agency’s advisory committee reviewed data from 16 independent studies before issuing the guidance, the company said.
“Battery life should be a key consideration in cardiac device selection for the millions of patients who rely on them daily,” SVP Dr. Kenneth Stein said in prepared remarks. “We are proud to have our EnduraLife battery technology recognized by NICE’s evidence-based review process and available for the benefit of patients and the healthcare system at large.”
“The NICE guidance reinforces the multi-faceted importance of battery longevity in devices treating patients with heart failure and life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias,” added Dr. Jay Wright of the Liverpool Heart & Chest Hospital. “Additionally, the reduction in replacement procedures and potential savings identified within the guidance could offer longer-term relief to NHS providers who have recently seen an increase in the number of patients requiring further in-hospital treatment.”
Boston Scientific claimed that the EnduraLife tech has nearly twice the usable battery capacity of competing devices made by Abbott (NYSE:ABT) subsidiary St. Jude Medical (NYSE:STJ) and Medtronic (NYSE:MDT), in a device that’s as much as 18% smaller than other CRT-Ds.
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