The world’s first drug-eluting bioabsorbable vascular scaffold has been launched and will revolutionize the stent industry. On Sept. 25, 2012, Abbott announced the launch of its drug-eluting bioabsorbable stent, Absorb, in Europe, the Middle East and parts of Asia Pacific and Latin America. Absorb, which received CE mark certification in 2011, is used to treat coronary artery disease. Bioabsorbable stents, such as Absorb, will broaden treatment and diagnostic options, reduce the need for long-term anti-platelet therapy and reduce the risk of in-stent restenosis and thrombosis.

Abbott Vascular began its international launch of the Absorb coronary stent, the world's first drug-eluting bioresorbable vascular scaffold (BVS). It is now widely available across Europe and parts of Asia Pacific and Latin America. The Absorb is a first-of-its-kind device for the treatment of coronary artery disease (CAD).

Sept. 25, 2012 — America's healthcare system has become too complex and costly to continue business as usual, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine. Inefficiencies, an overwhelming amount of data and other economic and quality barriers hinder progress in improving health and threaten the nation's economic stability and global competitiveness, the report says. However, the knowledge and tools exist to put the health system on the right course to achieve continuous improvement and better quality care at lower cost, added the committee that wrote the report.

According to Millennium Research Group (MRG), the global authority on medical technology market intelligence, the saturated U.S. X-ray market will grow slowly to reach a value of $2.8 billion by 2016. Significant growth will be seen in digital replacement systems in all segments of the market.