Medtronic, having received European regulatory approval, is launching its TOTAL Across crossing catheter on the continent. The device is designed to help deliver guidewires 0.014-inch in size to the arteries in the legs, including below the knee (BTK), to cross occlusions that would otherwise be inaccessible with larger catheters. Guidewires can be swapped out as necessary, and saline or contrast agents can be pumped in through the catheter.
The device is made out of stainless steel wrapped into a flexible helix, with a tapered tip up front that can penetrate lesions narrower than the device’s cross-sectional diameter.
From Medtronic:
“BTK lesions are a common cause of CLI, which is a particularly difficult condition to treat,” explained Andrej Schmidt, MD, an angiologist and cardiologist in the Center for Vascular Medicine at Park-Hospital Leipzig in Germany. “The TOTAL across crossing catheter represents a tangible step forward in microcatheter design, providing extraordinary support and stability combined with one of the lowest crossing profiles available to better deal with the clinical challenge of distal BTK revascularization.”
Other devices in Medtronic’s peripheral product portfolio aimed at treating lower-extremity disease include the Complete SE (self-expanding) vascular stent, the IN.PACT line of drug-eluting balloons, and the Admiral, Pacific and Amphirion families of percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) balloon catheters. The Pacific and Amphirion PTA balloons are designed specifically for use in BTK arteries.
Press release: Medtronic Launches ‘TOTAL Across’ Crossing Catheter in Europe…
