St. Jude, McKesson co-market solution to evaluate blocked coronary arteries

A co-marketing agreement between McKesson and St. Jude Medical will integrate St. Jude's PressureWire Aeris technology, used to evaluate blocked coronary arteries, with the McKesson Horizon Cardiology Hemo solution (version 12.1).

The PressureWire Aeris, a wireless fractional flow reserve (FFR) device, evaluates blood flow blockages in the arteries to help indicate lesions that are responsible for ischemia, according to St. Paul, Minn.-based St. Jude.

In addition, the Aeris technology is free of cables and integrates physiological lesion assessment directly into the hemodynamic recording system in the cardiac cath lab, helping to advance workflow, said the company.

St. Jude said that use of the PressureWire Aeris technology is safer and more cost-effective than angiographic assessment. During the FAME trial that compared FFR-guided treatment using the PressureWire to standard angiography, the combined risk of death or myocardial infarction was 34 percent lower in patients evaluated by PressureWire prior to coronary stenting.

In addition, hospital healthcare expenditures for patients treated with the St. Jude PressureWire were 14 percent less than all others. According to St. Jude, this was due to reduced procedure and follow-up costs related adverse cardiac events.

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