1. Medtech Insight
  2. >>Archive

LAA Closure Devices: Reaching Critical Mass?

Transcatheter LAA closure devices are starting to amass the level of data required to demonstrate their safety and effectiveness, and, if all goes well, the long-awaited FDA approval of the first such device – Boston Scientific’s Watchman – could finally occur sometme next year. Although LAA closure devices have already taken off in some European countries, US physicians continue to struggle with lingering uncertainties, about the learning curve, procedural safety and how LAA closure will stack up against newer anticoagulant drugs. Regardless of how these issues are eventually resolved, industry leaders see a big opportunity for a successful device in the LAA closure space, with market estimates of $1 billion considered conservative by some.

Whether they turn out to be revolutionary advances or something far less relevant, the promising devices now in development to block off the opening to the heart’s left atrial appendage (LAA; a small, pouch that branches off the left atrium) could be a godsend to millions of patients suffering from atrial fibrillation (AF) who are taking lifelong anticoagulant drugs. AF affects more than four million Americans, and worldwide that number is expected to rise to 16 million by 2050.

LAA closure devices fall into two basic categories: epicardial devices used during surgical procedures that are designed to close the...

Read the full article – start your free trial today!

Join thousands of industry professionals who rely on Medtech Insight for daily insights

  • Start your 7-day free trial
  • Explore trusted news, analysis, and insights
  • Access comprehensive global coverage
  • Enjoy instant access – no credit card required
Start Free Trial

Already a subscriber?

More from Archive

Final Chance To Have Your Say: Take Our Reader Survey This Week

 
• By Ryan Nelson

Editor’s note: This is your final call to participate in the survey to better understand our subscribers’ content and delivery needs. The deadline is 20 September.

Shape Our Content: Take The Reader Survey

 
• By Ryan Nelson

Editor’s note: We are conducting a survey to better understand our subscribers’ content and delivery needs. If there are any changes you’d like to see in coverage topics, content format or the method in which you receive and access Medtech Insight, or if you love it how it is, now is the time to have your voice heard.

Patients With Movement Disorders Will Benefit From Medtronic’s Expanded MRI Labeling For DBS

 
• By Marion Webb

Medtronic announced it received expanded MRI labeling for its DBS systems, which is critical, given that almost 70% of all DBS-eligible patients will likely need an MRI at some point in their care, says Ashwini Sharan, CMO for Medtronic Neuromodulation.

Podcast: Lung Life AI CEO Shares Regulatory And Reimbursement Journey For Lung Cancer Diagnostic

 
• By Natasha Barrow

In this episode, Medtech Insight reporter Natasha Barrow speaks to LungLife AI CEO Paul Pagano. Lung Life AI is a US-based AIM-listed medical technology company that has developed a liquid biopsy test for the early detection of lung cancer called Lung LB. Pagano runs through the highlights of Lung Life AI journey to date and its future ambition for a strategic partnership. He also provides advice to similar diagnostic companies seeking reimbursement andcompliance with the US FDA Lab Developed Test ruling.

More from Medtech Insight

Roche Diagnostics Growth Flattens As China Reforms Bite; Bets On US Manufacturing, CGM For Growth

 
• By Shubham Singh

Roche has taken steps to mitigate potential tariff exposure that include shifting inventories and increasing US production of medicines. The company also initiated a tech transfer for one of its most exposed products to a US manufacturing site.

Award-Winning Lioness Implant Addresses ‘Silent Emergency’ Of Preterm Birth

 
• By Ashley Yeo

The Lioness non-surgical silicon ring implant is designed to put an end to pre-term births, sparing maternal anguish and saving health system costs. PregnanTech won the Biomed Israel 2025 medtech start-up award, and Limor Sandach told In Vivo how a non-digital technology beat off stiff competition.

Boston Scientific Raises Outlook … Again: Headwinds Offset By EP And Watchman

 
• By Natasha Barrow

Agent drug coated balloon, Watchman product sales, and electrophysiology (EP) business unit growth offset Acurate discontinuation and tariff headwinds. CEO Michael Mahoney shouted out coronary therapies business and answered questions on CMS proposed Ambulatory Surgical Center codes.