Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) has announced the U.S. launch and first use of the OffRoad™ Re-Entry Catheter System, an important addition to the company's portfolio of tools to treat complete arterial blockages in the major arteries of the legs.  These blockages, called chronic total occlusions (CTOs), are associated with advanced peripheral artery disease (PAD).  The first use of the OffRoad System was performed by J.A. Mustapha, M.D., director of Cardiac Catheterization Laboratories, director of Endovascular Interventions, and director of Cardiovascular Research at Metro Health Hospital in Wyoming, Mich.

Continuing to expand the role of endovascular aortic repair, Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT) has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the Valiant Captivia Thoracic Stent Graft System to be used in the treatment of type B aortic dissections, a serious cardiovascular condition associated with high morbidity and mortality in which the upper segment of the body's main artery has become torn along the innermost layer of the vessel wall.

Temple University Hospital (TUH) could be among the first U.S.-based hospitals to test a new device known as a multilayer stent in patients suffering from aortic aneurysm, a condition characterized by the formation of a potentially life-threatening bulge in the aorta. Approved in Europe in 2010, the device has already been used to help hundreds of European patients with the condition, and Grayson H. Wheatley III, MD, FACS, Associate Professor of Surgery at Temple University School of Medicine, and Director of Aortic & Endovascular Surgery at TUH, thinks thousands more could benefit in the United States.

Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited (hereafter, Daiichi Sankyo) today announced that the New Drug Application (NDA) for its investigational, oral, once-daily direct factor Xa-inhibitor SAVAYSATM (edoxaban) Tablets has been submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In the U.S., Daiichi Sankyo is seeking approval for edoxaban for the reduction in risk of stroke and systemic embolic events (SEE) in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF), as well as for the treatment of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or pulmonary embolism (PE) and for the prevention of recurrence of symptomatic venous thromboembolism (VTE). SAVAYSA is the proposed brand name for edoxaban if approved for marketing in the U.S.

The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai joins a top-flight network of 25 regional stroke centers announced by the National Institute of Health that will focus on prevention, treatment, and recovery from stroke. As part of the NIH Stroke Trials Network (NIHStrokeNet), the medical school will receive a 5-year, $1.3 million grant to build a collaborative research infrastructure for a regional coordinating stroke center.

The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) has been named one of 25 regional stroke centers by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the only one in Texas.

Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT), announced today CE Mark (Conformité Européenne) in Europe and Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) listing in Australia for its highly flexible 4 Fr multi-electrode Symplicity Spyral™ catheter and Symplicity G3™ radio frequency (RF) generator. 

Chosen for nearly one out of every two endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repairs worldwide, the Endurant II AAA stent graft system from Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT) continues to demonstrate long-term durability and consistent outcomes at three years in a real-world setting.