Officials at Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) announced this week that they would reveal only limited patient safety results when they present data from a clinical trial of the Watchman stroke prevention implant at the American College of Cardiology conference this week.
Research & Development
Alzheimer’s: Cognoptix’s eye exam aims for early detection
Massachusetts medical device maker Cognoptix launched a clinical trial of its Sapphire II eye exam, assessing its potential for diagnosing early stages of Alzheimer’s disease by detecting certain biomarkers in the eye.
The non-invasive exam looks for traces of beta amyloid peptides, a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease which grows in parallel in the eye as well as in the brain, according to the company.
Weight loss: ReShape Medical closes pivotal trial enrollment for surgery-free device
San Clemente, Calif.-based ReShape Medical closed pivotal trial enrollment for its ReShape Duo non-surgical weight-loss system, the company announced this week.
ReShape’s Duo system is comprised of dual intra-gastric balloons that are placed in the stomach non-surgically via an endoscope inserted into the mouth. The balloons takes up space in the stomach to help patients feel full faster, causing them to eat smaller portions.
Study: 1 in 10 recalled St. Jude Medical Riata lead coatings fail within 6 years
Danish researchers reported this week that their latest studies of St. Jude Medical‘s (NYSE:STJ) recalled Riata defibrillator leads found that 1 in 10 had poked through their coating in an average of just over 5 years.
Mayo Clinic diabetes initiative nabs former Medtronic exec | Personnel Moves
Hypertension: ReCor launches post-market study of next-gen Paradise system
California medical device startup ReCor Medical launched a post-market study of its next-generation Paradise renal denervation system in treatment of patients with resistant high blood pressure.
The 50-patient study has already enrolled patients at a participating facility in the Netherlands with the Paradise device, the only renal denervation device on the European market that treats high blood pressure with ultrasound rather than radiofrequency.
St. Jude looks beyond blood pressure for benefits of renal denervation
St. Jude Medical (NYSE:STJ) is aiming to take its renal denervation therapy a step further, looking for signs that the minimally invasive treatment improves health beyond lowering high blood pressure in patients with uncontrolled hypertension.
Parkinson’s patients could use neurostim earlier, researchers say
Patients with Parkinson’s disease may benefit from receiving neurostimulating brain implants earlier in the course of the disease, according to researchers.
Treatment with neurostimulators, which delivery mild electrical pulses to targeted areas in the brain, are already standard for patients with advanced Parkinson’s disease, but researchers suggested that it may benefit patients "at an earlier stage than current recommendations suggest."
BRIC: Varian taps “brain power” in Russia
Radiotherapy devices maker Varian Medical Systems (NYSE:VAR) announced a collaborative research & development initiative designed to "tap brain power" among Russia’s scientific institutes.
Weight loss: EnteroMedics shares tank after device “fails” study
Wall Street fled in droves after weight-loss devices maker EnteroMedics (NSDQ:ETRM) announced that its Maestro vagal blocking system failed to meet endpoints in a pivotal study, but the mass exodus isn’t discouraging the company from moving forward with a bid for FDA approval.
St. Jude revisits RESPECT trial, touts signs of benefits of Amplatzer device
Medical device giant St. Jude Medical (NYSE:STJ) resurrected data from its failed RESPECT study, touting additional analyses and benefits of its Amplatzer patent foramen ovale closure device.