New Product from Perclose Subsidiary Builds Abbott's Vascular Franchise
ABBOTT PARK, Ill., Nov. 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Abbott Laboratories today
announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved for
marketing in the United States, The Closer(TM), the next-generation vascular
closure device that will allow cardiologists and radiologists to surgically
close punctures in the femoral artery more quickly and easily, improving this
procedure for both doctors and patients. The Closer is CE Marked and
currently marketed in the European community.
The Closer device provides a minimally invasive closure of the arterial
access site in the femoral artery following a diagnostic procedure such as
coronary angiography. The Closer allows patients to recover more rapidly from
these procedures and allows a lower-cost treatment alternative to traditional
methods. Because of its ease of use, it can close arterial punctures in less
than half the time of current Perclose closure devices. Perclose's products,
including The Closer, are the only devices cleared by the FDA for reducing the
time to discharge from hospital when used after interventional procedures.
"With The Closer, patients will experience more rapid recovery, superior
clinical treatment, and ultimately, shorter hospital stays," said Richard A.
Gonzalez, senior vice president, hospital products division at Abbott
Laboratories. "This is why Abbott acquired Perclose -- The Closer is another
example of building our vascular franchise with superior, innovative
technology."
"The Closer was developed with direct feedback from clinician users," said
Henry A. Plain, president of Perclose, an Abbott Laboratories company. "This
latest innovation reinforces our leadership in technology innovation and
commitment to the medical community and their patients."
The arterial closure market represents one of the newest and fastest
growing segments of the cardiovascular device market, with an annual compound
growth rate of over 40 percent. Although there are over 7 million
catheterization procedures performed worldwide, less than 20 percent currently
utilize closure devices.
Abbott Laboratories is a global, diversified healthcare company devoted to
the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of pharmaceutical,
diagnostic, nutritional and hospital products. The company employs 56,000
people and markets its products in more than 130 countries. In 1998, the
company's sales and net earnings were $12.5 billion and $2.3 billion,
respectively, with diluted earnings per share of $1.51.
Abbott's news releases and other information are available on the
company's Web site at http://www.abbott.com .
SOURCE Abbott Laboratories
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