January 29, 2009 - Boston Scientific Corp. said today it received approval from the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) to market its TAXUS Liberte Paclitaxel-Eluting Coronary Stent System.
The company plans to launch the product as soon as reimbursement approval is granted, which is expected in the coming weeks. TAXUS Liberte is the only second-generation drug-eluting stent approved for use in Japan. Design improvements over the Company’s first-generation TAXUS Express2 Stent include thinner struts to allow better stent deliverability and conformability, as well as a more uniform stent geometry for consistent lesion coverage and drug distribution.
The TAXUS Liberte Stent uses proven paclitaxel-eluting technology, which has been evaluated by an extensive randomized, controlled clinical trial program, and studied in 35,000 real-world patients enrolled in post-approval registries. More than 4.6 million TAXUS Stents have been implanted globally, the company said.
The TAXUS Liberte Stent will replace the TAXUS Express2 Stent, which was launched in Japan in May 2007. It is approved for sale in the U.S., Europe and other international markets.
For more information: www.bostonscientific.com