Good news here. Will it move the stock? Long term prospect are great for MDT. As we get past this Internet mania many of the long term consistent performers will be back in favor. 1999 has been a transition year for MDT and 2000 looks to be a good year. One disclaimer is that MDT doesnt have any major dilutitive aquisitions like AVE.
Good luck all longs,
Mike
National Institutes of Health Study Published in The New England Journal OfMedicine Shows Heart Attack Patients May Be at Significant Risk for SuddenCardiac Death
New Study Also Shows 74 Percent Fewer Sudden Deaths in Heart Attack Patients
Receiving Implantable Defibrillators
MINNEAPOLIS, Dec. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- A National Institutes of Health study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine shows that some people who have suffered a heart attack are at significant risk for sudden cardiac death (SCD), a deadly heart rhythm condition. The results of this study underscore the importance of the early use of implantable cardioverter- defibrillators (ICDs) for reducing SCD. According to the study, when an electrophysiologist uses special heart rhythm testing in high-risk heart attack patients and implants a defibrillator, there is a 74 percent reduction in sudden cardiac death compared with those patients who receive heart rhythm medications only.
(PHOTO: newscom.com )
The study, one of the first to highlight the true risk of SCD in patients who have experienced heart attacks, indicates that significantly improved survival from SCD is directly attributable to the use of implantable defibrillators and special electrophysiologic (EP) testing. According to study investigators, if the findings are applied in clinical practice, up to 65,000 lives could be saved.
"The study's results have clarified the risk for sudden cardiac death in some heart attack patients, which was found to be 32 percent at five years," said Eric Prystowsky, M.D., director of the electrophysiology laboratory, at St. Vincent Hospital in Indiana and a co-investigator in the study. "If a member of my family were to suffer a heart attack, and experience abnormal rhythms and heart function afterward, my advice would be EP testing -- and if needed, the implantation of a defibrillator as soon as possible."
Each year, 300,000-400,000 people in the United States die from sudden cardiac death. Different from a heart attack, which is caused by a coronary artery blockage that prevents blood from adequately nourishing the heart muscle, SCD is a rapid heart rhythm problem that can be deadly if not immediately treated.
"The results of this study clearly show that certain people who have suffered a heart attack are at significant risk for sudden cardiac death, even five years after their heart attack," said Steve Mahle, president of Medtronic Cardiac Rhythm Management. "The good news is that the study also shows that EP testing and ICD therapy can save thousands of lives each year."
"The study's results have created a very compelling argument for the early adoption of EP testing for high risk patients with coronary artery disease which, in turn, can significantly reduce the number of sudden cardiac deaths in this patient population," said Alfred E. Buxton, M.D., director of electrophysiology at Brown University in Rhode Island and the study's lead clinical investigator. "The results of this study point out the broad-based need for education programs to inform heart attack patients of their risk for sudden cardiac death, as well as to educate doctors about the importance of EP testing and ICD therapy, if necessary."
The study, called the Multicenter Unsustained Tachycardia Trial (MUSTT), included patients from 85 medical centers in the U.S. and Canada and enrolled more than 2,200 patients who had a history of coronary heart disease, decreased heart function and short episodes of rapid heartbeats in the lower chambers of the heart, called nonsustained ventricular tachycardias. These patients saw an electrophysiologist and underwent an EP test which records electrical signals from the heart to identify a predisposition for life-threatening heart rhythm problems. An electrophysiologist is a cardiologist who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of heart rhythm disorders.
The MUSTT study, in addition to several other clinical studies, has shown that ICD therapy can be an effective means of preventing SCD and, in some patient populations, should be considered a first-line therapy, rather than medications.
ICDs, which are approximately the size of a small pager, bring the technology of external defibrillators used by emergency medical professionals across the country right into a patient's chest. Once in place, an ICD constantly monitors the heart's rhythm and automatically delivers the appropriate electrical therapy to interrupt a life-threatening arrhythmia and restore the heart to a normal rhythm.
Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT), headquartered in Minneapolis, is the world's leading medical technology company specializing in interventional and implantable therapies that restore health, extend life and alleviate pain. Its Internet address is medtronic.com
SOURCE Medtronic, Inc.
CO: Medtronic, Inc.
ST: Minnesota
IN: MTC
SU: PDT
12/15/1999 17:13 EST prnewswire.com
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