The AngioJet® Rheolytic™ Thrombectomy System is the most effective thrombus removal system on the market and Possis has a family of catheters designed, or in development, to treat vascular thrombus from head-to-toe. The unique AngioJet System uses pressurized saline delivered through multiple jet holes arranged in a halo design and contained inside the tip of a catheter. The catheter is inserted into the blood vessel using standard guide wires. The high-pressure saline jets travel inside the catheter at about two-thirds the speed of sound creating a near-perfect vacuum (the Bernoulli principle), drawing in the thrombus, or blood clot, and breaking it into microscopic fragments that are then propelled back through the catheter and out of the patient’s body. Because the jets are contained within the catheter tip and do not come into direct contact with the vessel wall, it is safe for use in even very small vessels.

The AngioJet System consists of three components – the drive unit, the disposable pump set and the family of disposable catheters. Possis continues to design new, more powerful, more effective catheters, including the newest AVX™ catheter, which is 25% more powerful than its predecessor. The AngioJet family of catheters now includes the XMI® catheter for peripheral and coronary indications, the XVG® catheter for peripheral indications, the Xpeedior® catheter for peripheral indications, and the AVX™ catheter for use with arteriovenous grafts and fistulas. And in 2004, Possis Medical plans to introduce its XMI Rapid Exchange catheter for both coronary and peripheral indications.