MaRS EXCITE and Medtronic of Canada Focused on Bringing Cost-Effective Hypertension Therapy to Canadians

Last year, there were many reports on renal denervation technology by Medgadget including Medtronic’s Symplicity system, which is a minimally invasive treatment for patients suffering from pharmacotherapy-resistent hypertension. Although it is already available in 70 countries and in investigational use in the US and Japan, the 5 million Canadians suffering from hypertension have yet to benefit from this innovative technology.

The MaRS Excellence in Clinical Innovation and Technology Evaluation (EXCITE) program is poised to change that by selecting Medtronic of Canada as one of the first three companies to participate in this program that focuses on helping companies to accelerate the adoption and reimbursement of innovative health technologies through a single, harmonized, pre-market, evidence-based process. MaRS EXCITE selects technologies primarily based on their potential to substantially improve clinical outcomes for patients or to lower system costs compared to current approaches. In March 2012, Health Canada issued a class IV License to Medtronic for the Symplicity Renal Denervation System. It is the first licensed device in Canada for treatment-resistant hypertension. The license was issued with conditions of post-market follow-up to monitor for rare adverse events and to ensure sustained safety and effectiveness.

 
According to the MaRS Program press release:

“Medtronic of Canada is enthusiastic to be participating in the pioneering MaRS EXCITE program with our SymplicityTM Renal Denervation Catheter System,” said Neil Fraser, President, Medtronic of Canada Ltd. “Through its evaluation of Symplicity, EXCITE will develop the economic evidence to determine the applicability and cost-effectiveness required by the Ontario health system to make the appropriate decisions on the adoption of this novel, cost-effective, and clinically-proven technology that has the potential to benefit Ontarians suffering from pharmacotherapy-resistant hypertension.”

Announcement: Breakthrough health technologies to reach patients faster through MaRS EXCITE…