St. Jude Gets CE Mark for MultiPoint Pacing CRT Pacemaker

St. Jude Medical said Thursday that it has received a CE mark for its Quadra Allure MP cardiac resynchronization therapy pacemaker, the only such device to feature multiple-point pacing.

The MultiPoint Pacing technology allows physicians to pace multiple locations on the left side of the heart and has been shown to enhance patient response to CRT, the St. Paul, Minn., devicemaker said.

In a recent study, response rates in patients using St. Jude’s MultiPoint Pacing technology improved 19 percent at 12 months, compared with traditional CRT. Left ventricular function also improved, the company said. The patients were selected because they did not respond traditional bi-ventricular pacing therapy, which a third of CRT patients receive.

The Quadra Allure MP CRT-P is designed to work with the St. Jude’s Quartet LV lead, which features four electrodes to provide different pacing configurations. With MultiPoint Pacing, physicians now can program simultaneous or sequential delivery of two LV pulses at two different anatomical locations per pacing cycle, rather than the standard single pulse, resulting in more effective resynchronization, the devicemaker said.

St. Jude is currently evaluating the MultiPoint Pacing technology in an FDA-approved U.S. clinical trial, said Kristi Warner, a spokeswoman for the company. The Quadra Allure CRT-P without MPP was approved this past May, she noted, adding the company has not set a timeline for seeking FDA approval of the Quadra Allure MP. — Kellen Owings

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