As Baby Boomers Retire, Aortic Stenosis Targeted By Heart Valve Manufacturers

(SANEPR.com) June 3, 2009 -- In 2007, heart disease was the leading cause of death in America. Many expect the epidemic of heart disease to greatly expand as 76 million “baby boomers” reach sixty years of age through 2024.

One particular form of heart disease - aortic valve stenosis - negatively impacts the flow of blood through the heart. Media attention regarding aortic stenosis elevated in early 2009 as the former First Lady of the United States, Barbara Bush, and comedian, Robin Williams, both underwent heart surgery to treat this aortic valve disorder.

A normal aortic valve opens wide and closes tightly. This ensures that blood flows in one direction through the heart. When an aortic valve suffers from stenosis, the heart valve is narrowed which compromises valve function and blood flow. Aortic stenosis can be congenital or degenerative depending upon the patient. Ultimately, aortic stenosis can manifest in many patient symptoms including: loss of breath, fatigue, cough, heart palpitations and swollen ankles.

While mitral valve prolapse is regarded as the most common form of heart valve disease, treatment for aortic stenosis is continuing to rise. According to the American Heart Association, approximately 18,000 aortic valves were surgically replaced during 2007 in the United States alone.

Given the potential for market growth, several heart valve manufacturers are developing surgical technologies to address the stated and latent needs of those in need of heart valve replacement surgery.

“Patients requiring heart surgery, due to aortic stenosis, want less pain and a faster recovery,” notes Adam Pick, founder of www.Heart-Valve-Surgery.com and author of The Patient’s Guide To Heart Valve Surgery. “For these reasons, minimally invasive technologies are getting a lot of attention from the medical community, investors and heart valve manufacturers.”

A former aortic valve replacement patient, Pick is referring to the recent activities of Edwards Lifesciences and Medtronic. Both companies have invested vast amounts of capital and human resources to acquire the people, processes and technology to support market share gains in the non-invasive, aortic valve replacement market.

In 2003, Edwards Lifesciences acquired Percutaneous Valve Technologies to bolster their capabilities in this space. Edwards is currently marketing their transcatheter heart valve replacement device under the brand name SAPIEN in Europe. While SAPIEN is already having a positive impact on Edwards’ revenues and earnings, the technology has yet to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

As for Medtronic, the Minneapolis-based company acquired CoreValve earlier this year for an estimated $700 million. Bill Hawkins, chairman and CEO of Medtronic, said, “The acquisition of CoreValve gives additional momentum to our strategies for growth and will improve the quality of care for more than 300,000 people worldwide with severe aortic stenosis.”

“As a patient advocate, I’m thrilled the heart valve manufacturers are funding these minimally invasive initiatives,” notes Pick, “It could be a significant win-win for the patients and the companies developing non-invasive technologies for aortic stenosis treatment.”