HLT Announces First Patient Enrollments in a Feasibility Study of a New Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement System

"The Meridian^® Valve allows us to evaluate complete valve function before releasing it from the delivery system," said Dr. Rodés-Cabau, director of Catheterization and Interventional Laboratories at the Quebec Heart and Lung Institute (Quebec City, Quebec, Canada). "The valve was easy to implant and the overall procedure was predictable. Hemodynamic stability was maintained throughout the entire procedure, including the time of valve implant." For more information about the Meridian^® Valve, please visit www.hltmedical.com.

The RADIANT trial is a prospective, non-randomized, single-arm, multicenter study that will enroll up to 20 high-risk patients with severe aortic valve stenosis. The endpoint will evaluate all-cause mortality at 30 days after implant of the Meridian^® Transcatheter Aortic Valve. Patient follow-up will occur at one, six and 12 months and annually to five years.    

"The RADIANT clinical study will provide evidence regarding the safety and performance of a third-generation transcatheter aortic valve replacement therapy," said Kevin Bassett, HLT general manager. "We're delighted to partner in the study with outstanding clinicians at the Quebec Heart and Lung Institute as well as the Sunnybrook Health Science Centre in Toronto."

An estimated 1.5 million patients in North America and Europe suffer from severe aortic stenosis, according to Osnabrugge. The standard treatment is surgical valve replacement, which involves an open-heart operation. But an estimated 30 percent of patients with severe aortic stenosis are considered too weak or sick to undergo successful open-heart surgery.

Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) therapy is a less invasive option for these patients. During a TAVR procedure, a compressed replacement valve is delivered via a catheter, or long, hollow tube, placed in a blood vessel in the upper leg and threaded to the beating heart. The physician positions and delivers the replacement valve inside the damaged valve then removes the catheter.

HLT's Meridian^® Transcatheter Valve is self-expanding. As in surgical valve designs, a flexible wire frame supports the valve's leaflets which is designed to promote good flow characteristics and reduce stress on the leaflet tissue for long-term performance.

Physicians treating patients with transcatheter valve therapy settle for less-than-ideal valve positioning in up to 25 percent of cases. Ideal positioning helps achieve good hemodynamics (blood flow and pressure), reduces leakage around the valve's base and contributes to optimal patient outcomes.

HLT's Pathfinder^® delivery system is intended to provide physicians confidence in positioning the valve. Specifically, it is designed to allow them to reposition or retrieve the valve if necessary and most importantly fully assess the valve's function prior to its final release in the heart.

About HLT
HLT, Inc., is a clinical phase medical device company focused on transcatheter aortic valve replacement therapy that will provide physicians increased procedure confidence, control during the implant procedure and improved patient outcomes. HLT's Meridian^® Transcatheter Aortic Valve is designed to conform to the natural structure of the heart, and its Pathfinder^® II Delivery System provides physicians control over valve placement in a beating heart, as well as flexibility to reposition or fully retrieve the valve before release.

HLT is headquartered in Maple Grove, Minn. Its team of 90 employees works alongside its sister company ACIST Medical Systems, a pioneer and market leader of advanced contrast delivery and imaging systems for interventional cardiology. The privately held companies are part of the Bracco Group, an international leader in diagnostic imaging based in Milan, Italy. For more about HLT, visit www.hltmedical.com.

About Bracco Group
Bracco has headquarters in Milan, Italy, and was founded in 1927. It is active in the healthcare sector through Bracco Imaging (diagnostic imaging), ACIST Medical Systems and HLT (cardiology) and the Centro Diagnostico Italiano diagnostic clinic. It has around 3,400 employees and annual total consolidated revenues of over $1.38 billion USD (1.3 billion Euro). Bracco operates in more than 100 countries worldwide. To learn more about Bracco Group, visit www.bracco.com.

Osnabrugge R., et al Aortic Stenosis in the Elderly. J Am Coll Card 2013; 62:1002-12

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Contact: Peggy Malikowski
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SOURCE HLT, Inc.

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