DES sales to rebound but not to original highs, expert says

Drug-eluting stent (DES) business will show some rebound in the next few years with the U.S. launch of new devices in 2008, but it will never reach 2005-2006 levels again, experts said last week at the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics conference.

Martin Leon, director of the Cardiovascular Research Foundation, predicted price erosion will continue due to new FDA regulatory hurdles, reimbursement concerns, liability issues, government oversight and an unprecedented decline in percutaneous coronary intervention procedures.

The impact of the decline in DES use has been mainly in the U.S., with September the lowest it has ever been, Leon said.

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