Cardiac implant market to see $16B rebound by 2012
The U.S. demand for cardiac implants is projected to increase 8.8 percent annually to $16.4 billion in 2012, rebounding from a slowdown that intensified in 2007 when product recalls and safety controversies weakened the market for a number of devices, according to a report from Freedonia Group, a market research firm.

According to the report, the development of next-generation models based on new technologies and improved materials will rectify recent performance problems experienced by implantable cardiac rhythm devices and lessen the thrombosis risk of drug-eluting stents (DES).

Freedonia said that shortcomings in existing drug therapies will promote the increasing use of cardiac implants in the treatment and management of coronary and peripheral heart diseases, cardiac arrhythmia, congestive heart failure and valvular heart defects.

Based on the breadth of indications served, pacing devices will remain the top-selling group of cardiac implants, with demand expanding 7.8 percent annually to $8.7 billion in 2012, according to the report.

Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) devices will post the fastest growth among pacing devices as they greatly improve therapeutic outcomes in patients afflicted with congestive heart failure. The introduction of new DES with improved designs and a reduced risk of complications will boost the market for cardiac stents and stent-related implants more than 10 percent annually to $6.5 billion in 2012, Freedonia found. The new introductions will encourage the expansion of angioplasty as a treatment for coronary heart disease.

Other stents and stent-related implants projected to fare well in the marketplace include endovascular stent-grafts, femoral and related stents and carotid stents.

However, the report noted that the demand for structural cardiac implants will remain comparatively low due to the limited indications served and smaller potential patient base. Tissue heart valves and implantable heart monitors hold the best growth prospects among these products. Tissue heart valves will capture demand away from mechanical heart valves in the treatment of valvular heart defects based on a reduced blood-clotting risk.
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