Guidant Launches New Cardiac Surgery Products

Guidant Corp. (Indianapolis) has launched several new products for the minimally invasive cardiac surgery (MICS) market. These products include an off-pump, beating-heart-bypass system and a vacuum-assist stabilization system.

Approximately 350,000 coronary artery bypass surgery procedures were performed in the United States in 1999, of which an estimated 15-20% were beating heart, using the off-pump technique pioneered by CardioThoracic Systems Inc., which Guidant purchased in November of last year. These new products represent Guidant's first launch of MICS products since the completion of that acquisition.

The company's new Vortex stabilization system utilizes vacuum-assist technology, which enables the physician to immobilize the artery while performing beating-heart bypass. The device features a unique stabilizer foot that gently captures the tissue, providing good stabilization at low vacuum settings, which is intended to minimize tissue trauma. Two new Ultima stabilizers were also unveiled.

The Activator II drive mechanism, a multi-use component that can be used with both the Vortex and Ultima stabilization systems, now offers increased access to the beating heart. The company also introduced an improved Aries CO₂ blower/mister with a fine-mist tip to enhance visibility when suturing.

Guidant has also added three new Voyager Aortic IntraClusion devices for use in stopped-heart procedures that include coronary artery bypass, mitral valve replacement and valve repair. These devices allow physicians to treat a wider range of patient anatomies, offering a less traumatic method of eliminating blood flow to the heart -- a necessary step in any stopped-heart procedure.

The Voyager Aortic IntraClusion device is one of the first available cardiac surgery tools to incorporate an integrated design that allows the physician to perform four critical functions through a single incision. This design potentially reduces the complications typically associated with multiple incisions and external cross clamping of the aorta.

The company also unveiled the Ceres bridging system for use in endoscopic saphenous vein harvesting. This technology complements the Vasoview Uniport Plus endoscopic vessel harvesting system.

Edited by Ursula Jones