Shares of Medtronic, Inc. (MDT) climbed 2% to eventually close at $74.47 yesterday following the company's announcement that it has initiated the Cryo-FIRST clinical trial in Europe, to estimate the clinical efficacy of its Artic Front Advance cryoballoon.
The Cryo-FIRST (Catheter Cryoablation Versus Antiarrhythmic Drug as First-Line Therapy of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation) trial is a multicenter, randomized study which aims at evaluating the procedural success and clinical outcomes of atrial fibrillation (AF) patients undergoing cryoballoon ablation as a first-line treatment option compared with medication.
This study will enroll roughly 218 patients who suffer from paroxysmal AF (PAF), at up to 12 centers across Europe, to test the clinical benefit of the Medtronic Artic Front Advance cryoballoon as an initial treatment option compared to antiarrhythmic drug administration.
Currently, roughly 7 million people across the globe suffer from AF – a condition that causes rapid heart rhythm in the upper heart chambers and also entails high healthcare costs.
Incidentally, majority of physicians consider medication an appropriate first-line treatment for AF patients. However, per clinical research, about 50% of all patients who have symptomatic PAF are non-responsive to drug therapy. For such patients, early cryoablation can potentially improve treatment efficiency.
Notably, as per the most recent European guidelines, cryoablation has been recognized as the first-line therapy in selected symptomatic PAF patients. However, this minimally invasive procedure has not been approved as an initial treatment in the U.S. as yet.
Management at Medtronic expects the AF patient population to expand exponentially over the next generation. Consequently, the cryoballoon ablation therapy should be able to garner high demand and contribute toward improving patient outcomes and minimizing overall healthcare costs.
Currently, Medtronic carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Better-ranked medical product stocks include ICU Medical, Inc. (ICUI), MacroGenics, Inc. (MGNX) and Conatus Pharmaceuticals Inc. (CNAT). While ICU Medical sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Conatus Pharmaceuticals and MacroGenics hold a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
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