February 5, 2008 - Endologix Inc., developer and manufacturer of the Powerlink System endoluminal stent graft (ELG) for the minimally invasive treatment of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA), today noted a study published in the Jan. 31 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine comparing results of AAA repair following open surgery and endovascular repair.
The authors found that significantly more patients were discharged to home following endovascular repair, and that the laparotomy necessary to perform open repair carried its own risk for re-hospitalizations due to serious medical problems, such as abdominal wall hernia and bowel resection. The study was based on a review of 45,660 Medicare discharges.
The study, �Endovascular vs. Open Repair of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms in the Medicare Population,� authored by Marc L. Schermerhorn, M.D., A. James O�Malley, Ph.D., Ami Jhaveri, M.D., Philip Cotterill, Ph.D., Frank Pomposelli, M.D. and Bruce E. Landon, M.D., M.B.A., tracked 22,830 matched-pair Medicare patients between 2001 and 2004 with follow-up in 2005. An abstract of study results can be found at http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/short/358/5/494.
�We applaud these researchers for undertaking a comparative study that points to important advantages of minimally invasive AAA repair over open surgery beyond the generally accepted benefits of reductions in perioperative mortality and morbidity,� said Paul McCormick, president and CEO of Endologix. �These differences confer significant clinical and economic benefits for the endovascular option and support our conviction that endovascular repair is on the way to becoming the standard of care for AAA repair.�
For more information: www.endologix.com