MONTREAL, May 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - CryoCath Technologies , the global leader in cryotherapy products to treat cardiovascular disease, announced the presentation of 15 oral abstracts and posters, all pertaining to the use of CryoCath’s technology to treat heart arrhythmias at the 28th Annual Scientific Sessions of the Heart Rhythm Society, to be held in Denver, Colorado May 9-12, 2007.
In addition to these abstracts, CryoCath and cryoablation will be one of the central themes of a CME-accredited symposium, “Broadening the Range of Atrial Fibrillation Therapies.” Topics will include: Improving the Safety of Catheter Ablation for Atrial Fibrillation; Focal Catheter Cryoablation Strategies; Experimental Observations on the Use of Balloon Ablation Catheters for Atrial Fibrillation and Clinical Experience with CryoBalloon Ablation for Atrial Fibrillation. As well, two panel discussions, one on the Current Status of Commercially Available Ablation Catheters and one on Future Directions in Ablation Technologies in Atrial Fibrillation will be hosted. The symposium will be co-hosted by key chairs Dr. Wyn Davies of St. Mary’s Hospital in London, England and Dr. Jeremy Ruskin of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, MA. Presenters will include Dr. Vivek Reddy, Dr. Walter Kerwin, Dr. Douglas Packer and Dr. Karl-Heinz Kuck.
The HRS Educational Leadership Team is also offering two cryo technology-focused sessions as part of its core curriculum: “Ten Years of CryoAblation - What Have We Learned?” and “CryoThermal Ablation and other Energy Sources in Children and Patients with Congenital Heart Disease.”
“The fact that the HRS Educational Leadership Team has added these two sessions as part of the core curriculum is a testament to the increasing use of cryotherapy in the treatment of heart disease and an invaluable endorsement in encouraging the use of this technology,” said Jan Keltjens, President and CEO of CryoCath.
CryoCath currently has three electrophysiology products approved for use in North America and four approved for use in Europe. More than 40,000 patients have been treated with cryoablation using these products at over 400 centers worldwide. The company also has a product, Arctic Front(R), approved for Investigational Use in the United States. In Europe, more than 750 procedures have already been performed with the technology, a cryo-balloon specifically designed to treat Atrial Fibrillation.
About Arctic Front
Arctic Front is a minimally invasive cryo-balloon catheter designed specifically to treat Atrial Fibrillation. This bi-directional, double balloon catheter enables physicians to rapidly isolate all four pulmonary veins for the treatment of AF. Approved in Europe, it has treated more than 750 patients in more than 24 centers.
About Atrial Fibrillation
AF, described as a rapid and chaotic quivering of the top two chambers in the heart, is the most prevalent arrhythmia, affecting more than 2.3 million patients in the U.S. with an annual incidence of 170,000 new cases per year. It is a leading cause of stroke and hospitalizations, and has become the most common complication of cardiovascular surgery. If left untreated, it can lead to heart failure and death.
About CryoCath
CryoCath - www.cryocath.com - is a medical technology company that leads the world in cryotherapy products to treat cardiovascular disease. With a priority focus on providing physicians with a complete solution of catheter and surgical products to treat cardiac arrhythmias, CryoCath has multiple products approved in the U.S., across Europe and several ROW countries. The Company is developing additional products to expand its pipeline of products to treat cardiac arrhythmias.
This press release includes “forward-looking statements” that are subject to risks and uncertainties, including with respect to the timing of regulatory trials and their outcome. For information identifying legislative or regulatory, economic, climatic, currency, technological, competitive and other important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements, see CryoCath’s annual report available at www.sedar.com under the heading Risks and Uncertainties in the Management’s Discussion and Analysis section.
CryoCath Technologies Inc.
CONTACT: visit our website at www.cryocath.com, or contact: Michael Moore,Investor Relations, Phone: (416) 815-0700 ext. 241, Fax: (416) 815-0080,E-mail: mmoore@equicomgroup.com
