IRVINE, Calif., March 15, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Trimedyne, Inc. (OTCBB:TMED) today announced the U.S. Patent Office has allowed 24 claims of its patent application on a new Laser Angioplasty Catheter designed to open blocked coronary arteries of the heart without damage to the artery wall. The patent should issue in a few months.
Blockages, due to the build-up of plaque in the coronary arteries, cause severe chest pain on exertion and, if they close a vessel almost completely, a heart attack. The most common treatments for this condition are bypass surgery and balloon angioplasty. While 800,000 balloon angioplasties are performed each year in the United States, many blockages cannot be treated by angioplasty. In addition, many blocked vessels are too small to admit a balloon catheter or to be bypassed.
Some years ago, Trimedyne developed a bullet-shaped metal-tipped laser catheter and a large, 300 pound, $100,000 laser whose energy was used to heat the metal tip while it was advanced through a blocked vessel. Sales of these devices exceeded $30 million in both 1989 and 1990. However, heat radiating sideways from the metal tip of the laser catheter could damage the artery wall, and sales declined in later years.
Instead of a metal tip, Trimedyne's new Laser Catheter uses a proprietary glass tip, through which laser energy is transmitted to melt or vaporize the blockage. Little or no heat is radiated sideways, reducing the risk of damage to the artery wall. The new Laser Catheter can be made as small as 1 millimeter in diameter to enable totally blocked or very small vessels to be opened. Clinical trials of these devices will be required to obtain FDA marketing approval, the success of which cannot be assured.
Trimedyne manufactures lasers and proprietary fiber optic devices for a variety of minimally invasive surgical procedures, many of which are performed on an outpatient basis at substantially less cost than conventional surgery. For product, financial and other information, visit Trimedyne's website, http://www.trimedyne.com.
"Safe Harbor" Statement Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act:
Statements in this news release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1993 and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934. Such statements may involve various risks and uncertainties, some of which may be discussed in the Company's most recent report on Form 10-K-SB and subsequently filed SEC reports. There is no assurance such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.