VANCOUVER, Dec. 17, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — via NEWMEDIAWIRE — Neovasc, Inc. (“Neovasc” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ, TSX: NVCN), a leader in the development of minimally invasive transcatheter mitral valve replacement technologies and in the development of minimally invasive devices for the treatment of refractory angina, announced today that the Neovasc Reducer™ (the “Reducer”) was featured in a special issue titled: “The Future of Medicine” of National Graphic Magazine, published in December 2019. An image of the Reducer was accompanied by a case study of a patient who was implanted with the Reducer. Neovasc’s Medical Director, Prof. Shmuel Banai, MD, Director of the Division of Cardiology and the Head of Interventional Cardiology at the Tel Aviv Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel, is also prominently featured.
Fred Colen, President and Chief Executive Officer of Neovasc, stated, “As one of the most prestigious magazines covering science, geography, history, and world culture, National Geographic is an outstanding venue to introduce readers to the Reducer, a CE-marked device commercially available in Europe, but not yet available for commercial use in the United States. The entire Neovasc team was pleased to see both Professor Banai and Reducer featured in the article: ‘Pain: Scientists are unravelling new ways to treat it.’”
About Reducer
The Reducer is CE-marked in the European Union for the treatment of refractory angina, a painful and debilitating condition that occurs when the coronary arteries deliver an inadequate supply of blood to the heart muscle, despite treatment with standard revascularization or cardiac drug therapies. It affects millions of patients worldwide, who typically lead severely restricted lives as a result of their disabling symptoms, and its incidence is growing. The Reducer provides relief of angina symptoms by altering blood flow in the heart’s circulatory system, thereby increasing the perfusion of oxygenated blood to ischemic areas of the heart muscle. Placement of the Reducer is performed using a minimally invasive transvenous procedure that is similar to implanting a coronary stent and is completed in approximately 20 minutes.
While the Reducer is not approved for commercial use in the United States, the FDA granted Breakthrough Device designation to the Reducer in October 2018. This designation is granted by the FDA in order to expedite the development and review of a device that demonstrates compelling potential to provide a more effective treatment or diagnosis for life-threatening or irreversibly debilitating diseases. In addition, there must be no FDA approved treatments presently available, or the technology must offer significant advantages over existing approved alternatives.
Refractory angina, resulting in continued symptoms despite maximal medical therapy and without revascularization options, is estimated to affect 600,000 to 1.8 million Americans, with 50,000 to 100,000 new cases per year. 1
1T. J. Povsic, S. Broderick, K. J. Anstrom et al., “Predictors of long‐term clinical endpoints in patients with refractory angina,” Journal of the American Heart Association, vol. 4, no. 2, article e001287, 2015.
About Neovasc Inc.
Neovasc is a specialty medical device company that develops, manufactures and markets products for the rapidly growing cardiovascular marketplace. Its products include the Reducer™, for the treatment of refractory angina, which is not currently commercially available in the United States (2 US patients have been treated under Compassionate Use) and has been commercially available in Europe since 2015, and Tiara™, for the transcatheter treatment of mitral valve disease, which is currently under clinical investigation in the United States, Canada, Israel and Europe. For more information, visit: www.neovasc.com.
Forward-Looking Statement Disclaimer
Certain statements in this news release contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and applicable Canadian securities laws that may not be based on historical fact. When used herein, the words “plans”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “estimate”, “may”, “will”, “should”, “intend,” “believe”, and similar expressions, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements may involve, but are not limited to, statements regarding that the safety and efficacy of the Reducer, the growing incidence of refractory angina and the growing cardiovascular marketplace. Forward-looking statements are based on estimates and assumptions made by the Company in light of its experience and its perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors that the Company believes are appropriate in the circumstances. Many factors could cause the Company’s actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including those described in the “Risk Factors” section of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 20-F and in the Management’s Discussion and Analysis for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019 (copies of which may be obtained at www.sedar.com or www.sec.gov). These factors should be considered carefully, and readers should not place undue reliance on the Company’s forward-looking statements. The Company has no intention and undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Media:
Sean Leous
Phone: +1.646.677.1839
Sean.Leous@icrinc.com
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