Cook Medical to commence clinical trial of new stent

Cook Medical is to begin a new clinical trial of its Formula PTX Renal Stent designed to establish the effectiveness of the device for treating renal artery disease.

The medical device company has enrolled the first of a planned 120 patients who will take part in the Formula PTX study, which is expected to yield initial results in the fourth quarter of 2010.

Cook’s new drug-eluting stent works in conjunction with a specially-optimised balloon catheter and is designed to be inserted into tightly blocked blood vessels in order to open them up, thereby restoring blood flow.

It also delivers the drug paclitaxel to the cells in the blood vessel walls, which helps to reduce the risk of new blockages being formed.

Professor Dierk Scheinert, angiology and cardiology specialist at the participating Park-Krankenhaus Leipzig-South hospital, said: “We remain very excited about the potential of a drug-eluting renal stent. Providing physicians with a greater range of devices will ultimately help patients receive the best possible treatment options.”

Earlier this month, the company launched its new NavAlign system in Europe, which allows inferior vena cava filters to be inserted in a safer way.