April 1, 2009 - Medtronic Inc. this week began the international launch of the Driver Sprint RX Coronary Stent System, which received the CE Mark in February and is planned to be commercially available in more than 100 countries worldwide.
“The Driver stent system has always been very deliverable,” explained Dr. C. Dubois of Leuven University Hospital in Belgium. “Now, the new Driver Sprint system makes it even more deliverable for the most challenging anatomy.”
The new system combines the Driver Bare-Metal Stent (BMS) with an improved delivery system. Specifically, it incorporates a new tip design for a low profile and an enhanced shaft design, which together greatly improve the device’s deliverability, the company said. These innovations are also incorporated in Medtronic’s Endeavor Sprint and Resolute drug-eluting stent systems.
The Driver BMS has a unique modular construction and ultra-thin, round, edgeless struts allow for smooth delivery. This design also provides excellent radial strength and high conformability to the vessel wall. Medtronic said more than 2 million Driver stents have been implanted worldwide since 2002 when the platform was first introduced for clinical studies.
The outcomes of more than 3,400 patients followed in both registries and randomized controlled trials have demonstrated the device’s clinical efficacy. Short-term target lesion revascularization (TLR) rates for Driver patients in registries are low, ranging from 3.4 – 9.4 percent at six months and from 6.7 – 7 percent at nine months. In addition, nearly 600 Driver patients were followed to four years in ENDEAVOR II, and five-year data from this trial is due for release at EuroPCR in May. The TLR rate for these Driver patients (n=599) at four years is low for a BMS at 15.8 percent.
For more information: www.driverstent.com, www.medtronic.com
December 14, 2017 
