Edwards Lifesciences 2005 Annual Report"

justin
justin

justin
Born with a congenital heart defect that caused serious narrowing of his aortic heart valve, Justin R. has already undergone many medical procedures in his brief lifetime. Although his aortic and pulmonic heart valves already had been replaced in earlier surgeries, the 16-year-old’s condition continued to decline; his blood became so poorly oxygenated that his mother says he got tired “just talking.” After determining that he was too fragile to tolerate conventional open-heart valve surgery, Justin’s physicians asked Edwards to apply to the U.S. FDA for a special compassionate use status, allowing them to replace his failing pulmonic valve with the company’s experimental Cribier-Edwards percutaneous tissue valve. Just minutes after his procedure, Justin was awake and talking with his parents. The next day, he returned home, where he completed his recovery and began resuming a more active life, including stat-keeping for his high school basketball team, and completing his chores on the family’s farm.

Percutaneous heart valve replacement
This experimental, proprietary technology is designed to treat patients with severe aortic heart valve stenosis by threading a replacement heart valve via a catheter through the patient’s circulatory system. Percutaneous heart valve replacement and repair represent important therapeutic options for patients, and Edwards leads the field with the most advanced and comprehensive platform of technologies in development. These new therapies offer the promise of less-invasive treatments, shorter hospital stays and faster recovery times for patients.