Abiomed (Nasdaq:ABMD) announced today that the first patient in Japan was successfully treated with its Impella 5.5 with SmartAssist.
The first Impella 5.5 with SmartAssist procedure in Japan took place at Osaka Police Hospital. The treated patient was an 82-year-old man treated for cardiogenic shock.
“Our facility is proud to be the first in Japan to treat patients using Impella 5.5 with SmartAssist,” Osaka Police Hospital Director Dr. Yoshiki Sawa said in a news release. “We are excited to utilize this innovative technology and look forward to providing a minimally invasive surgical option for our acute heart failure patients.”
Additionally, the total number of patients around the globe that have been treated with Danvers, Massachusetts-based Abiomed’s Impella 5.5 with SmartAssist has now surpassed 5,000.
Dr. Tamer Attia of Emory University Hospital (Atlanta) performed the 5,000th procedure on a 41-year-old woman with cardiomyopathy.
“Impella 5.5 with SmartAssist has completely changed how we are able to support our cardiogenic shock and cardiomyopathy patients,” Emory University Hospital Chief of Thoracic Transplant and Mechanical Circulatory Support Surgery Dr. Mani Daneshmand said. “Given the safety and efficacy of Impella 5.5 with SmartAssist, Dr. Attia and his team are able to treat patients who otherwise would not have had other options for heart recovery.”
Abiomed designed the Impella 5.5 with SmartAssist as a minimally invasive platform that eliminates the need for a sternotomy or coring of the left ventricle while delivering forward flow to provide the patient with coronary flow and renal perfusion.
The system is fully unloading to reduce the heart’s oxygen demand and work, while SmartAssist provides weaning algorithms to optimize survival and native heart recovery.