May 26, 2011 – AngioDynamics announced the launch of the new 90 cm NeverTouch procedure kit featuring a longer TRE-Sheath introducer to gain vascular access above the ankle for the treatment of varicose veins that extend below the knee. The new kit complements existing kit lengths of 25 cm, 45 cm and 65 cm, and rounds out the NeverTouch fiber product offering.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cleared the Xience nano everolimus-eluting coronary stent system for the treatment of coronary artery disease in small vessels. The Xience nano, which is based on the same platform as the Xience V everolimus-eluting coronary stent, offers physicians in the United States a new option for treating patients with coronary artery disease in vessels as small as 2.25 mm in diameter.

May 24, 2011 — Aptus Endosystems Inc., a medical device company developing advanced technology for endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR), announced CE mark approval for the Aptus EndoStapling System. The innovative helical staple technology enables independent endograft fixation, and is designed to mimic the hand suturing performed during open surgical repair of abdominal aortic aneurysms. Aortic aneurysms are an enlarged and weakened section of the aorta, which can be lethal if left untreated. Each year, an estimated 100,000 people in Europe and about 200,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with this condition. In EVAR, an alternative to open surgical repair, a metal and fabric endograft is implanted using a catheter-based delivery system to isolate blood flow away from the aneurysm to prevent potential rupture and death.