Chinese Medical Devices: China-made stents expected to help millions with heart disease

World
Europe

02:11

A Chinese-made medical device is expected to help millions patients suffering from heart disease in the future. The device has been approved in nearly 40 countries and territories globally. Jim Spellman has more.

Stents are valuable tools doctors use to fight heart disease. They are small medical devices inserted into clogged arteries to open the passageway, allowing blood to flow freely.

And now, for the first time, The Lancet, a British medical journal, has published a study showing a Chinese-designed and made stent equals the performance of existing stents on the market.

The study was funded by the MicroPort Scientific Corporation - the Shanghai-based company that makes the Firehawk stent.

At 21 treatment centers across Europe, more than 16-hundred patients were randomly treated with either the Firehawk stent or the industry standard made by a different company. The study found no significant difference in outcomes between the two products.

One of the researchers involved in The Lancet study was Doctor Bo Xu.

DR. BO XU FUWAI HOSPITAL, BEIJING "Right now, it's the leading drug eluting stent in China. Today is very exciting to show the large randomized trial for the first time for a Chinese device."

The Firehawk stent has tiny laser-etched grooves containing medication that prevents the body from rejecting the device.

Another researcher involved in the study said the Chinese stent works.

DR. ANDREAS BAUMBACH UNIVERSITY OF BRISTOL, UK "This is a fantastic workhorse stent platform now proven to be safe and effective."

JIM SPELLMAN WASHINGTON DC "The device is currently approved for use in 36 countries and territories. The company will continue clinical trials and expects to expand into more countries soon."

DR. MARTIN B. LEON COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER "Early data that shows great promise and with many ongoing important randomized and non-randomized studies that should fill all the gaps and should meet any standard of high quality clinical evidence that would justify its appropriate use in a variety of clinical circumstances."

Microport says it fully expects the Firehawk to save millions of lives in the coming years. Jim Spellman, CGTN, Washington.