St. Jude Medical Inc. (STJ) recently announced 12-month data outcome from its EnligHTN III study. The data confirms the continuation of safe, rapid and effective treatment with the company’s second-generation EnligHTN renal denervation system for patients with drug-resistant, uncontrolled hypertension.
In May, St. Jude Medical had announced preliminary results from its EnligHTN III study, demonstrating the effectiveness of the EnligHTN renal denervation system in treating hypertension for a period of six months post the renal denervation procedure.
The 12-month data from the study was presented during the 26th annual Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics scientific symposium.
The EnligHTN Renal Denervation System
Renal denervation is a catheter-based ablation procedure used to treat patients with hypertension (high blood pressure), which is resistant to medical therapy. The system delivers radiofrequency energy from an ablation catheter to create lesions (tiny scars) along the renal nerves – a network of nerves in the walls of the renal arteries. The intentional disruption of the nerve supply has been clinically found to help reduce blood pressure.
The system, CE Mark approved in 2013, also offers physicians with a multi-electrode catheter that quickly and effectively delivers simultaneous ablations, thus reducing procedure time significantly.
EnligHTN III
The EnligHTN III study is an international, non-randomized clinical trial conducted to assess the performance of St. Jude Medical’s renal denervation system in treating hypertension.
It expands upon the research conducted in the EnligHTN I trial of the first-generation EnligHTN system, which demonstrated that patients with drug-resistant hypertension had a safe drop in blood pressure.
The 12-month EnligHTN III data continues to show the benefits associated with St. Jude Medical’s EnligHTN Renal Denervation System and merits for its potential to change the way hypertension is treated.
The data demonstrated that 78% of the patients responded positively to the therapy, with a blood pressure reduction of at least 10 mmHg. The study recorded an average systolic blood pressure reduction of 23 mmHg points and an average ambulatory systolic blood pressure reduction of 10 mmHg points.
Going Forward
Results from the study add to the growing body of clinical evidence supporting the benefits of EnligHTN renal denervation technologies. St. Jude Medical continues to move forward with research and development and clinical trials in the area of renal denervation.
Though developing this market will take longer than expected due to intense competition, St. Jude Medical expects its renal denervation program to fuel meaningful growth over the long term, improve patient outcome and ultimately reduce healthcare costs.
Currently, St. Jude Medical carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Better-ranked medical product stocks include ICU Medical, Inc. (ICUI), Abaxis, Inc. (ABAX) and Eagle Pharmaceuticals Inc. (EGRX). ICU Medical sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), while both Abaxis and Eagle Pharmaceuticals carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
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