Stent implants in U.S. declined in April-WSJ
Thu May 17, 2007 4:41am ET
NEW YORK, May 17 (Reuters) - The number of coronary stents implanted in the United States dropped in April, the Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site on Thursday, citing a market research firm.
Stents are tiny wire mesh tubes used to prop open diseased heart arteries. Stent makers include Boston Scientific Corp. (BSX.N: Quote, Profile , Research), Abbott Laboratories (ABT.N: Quote, Profile , Research) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N: Quote, Profile , Research).
Doctors performed about 71,200 stentings in April, the Journal reported, citing estimates from Millennium Research Group, a Toronto firm that surveys about 140 U.S. hospitals. The number was down more than 10 percent from March and more than 15 percent from a year earlier, it said.
The Journal cited doctors as saying that the drop was an unusually quick response to a study showing the devices provided little advantage over drug therapy in some patients.
Wall Street Journal - FREE PREVIEW
Stent Implants Declined in April
By Keith J. Winstein
Companies Featured in This Article: Boston Scientific, Abbott Laboratories, Johnson & Johnson
The number of coronary stents implanted in the U.S. dropped sharply in April, according to a leading market researcher, in what doctors said was an unusually quick response to a study showing the devices provided little advantage over drug therapy in some patients.
The new figures are the latest evidence that the tiny scaffolds used to prop open arteries are no longer a powerful growth engine for the medical industry. Americans spent at least $14 billion on coronary-stent procedures last year, including surgical and hospital fees. World-wide sales of the devices totaled about $6 billion.
Doctors performed about 71,200 stentings ...
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