Deborah Heart and Lung Center Served as Study Site in Landmark MADIT-CRT Trial

Clinical Evidence Shows Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy Significantly Slows Heart Failure Progression

Browns Mills, N.J., Sept. 9, 2009 – Deborah Heart and Lung Center served as a study site for the landmark MADIT-CRT trial, run by Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX) in order to study whether early intervention with cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillators (CRT-Ds) can slow the progress of heart failure. The recently-announced study results, just published in the New England Journal of Medicine, used data collected from 1,800 patients worldwide and concluded that Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy does significantly reduce the relative risk of heart failure.

Raffaele Corbisiero, MD, Vice Chair of Cardiovascular Medicine, Section Chief of Electrophysiology and Pacing, and Chair of Electromechanical Therapy Institute at Deborah Heart and Lung Center, has been a pro-active writer and researcher on heart failure, one of the country’s leading causes of death (in the U.S. alone nearly 5.5 million people suffer from some form of heart failure). Dr. Corbisiero’s special interest in expanding indications for device therapy, pacemakers, defibrillators, resynchronization therapy, heart failure therapy and complex ablation--combined with Deborah’s specialization as a heart hospital--made the site an ideal study participant.

“Participating in the Boston Scientific study was a natural for us,” he said, “since we implant so many heart devices here. Knowing the best approaches to slow the progress of heart failure will only benefit our patients in the long run. As a teaching hospital, I strongly support participating in clinical trials that are key to our programs, and we are also looking for new device recommendations that will not only give our patients a chance for a longer life, but also a life that retains a high quality.”

Arthur Moss, M.D., Professor of Medicine at the University of Rochester Medical Center and Principal Investigator of the trial, reports Boston Scientific's cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillators were associated with a 34-percent relative reduction in the risk of all-cause mortality or first heart failure event in asymptomatic and mild heart failure patients, when compared to standard implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs). "The MADIT-CRT Executive Committee anticipated that the benefit for the CRT-D therapy group would be dominated by a reduction in heart failure events and the data overwhelmingly confirm that," said Dr. Moss.

"The publication of the manuscript by the New England Journal of Medicine and the presentation of MADIT-CRT data at ESC (European Society of Cardiology) highlight the importance of this study, which clearly demonstrates that CRT-D therapy slows the progression of heart failure, further delaying the onset of more severe and life-limiting conditions," said Fred Colen, President, Boston Scientific Cardiac Rhythm Management. "We look forward to working with the FDA as we seek approval for an expanded indication for our CRT-D devices, based on these strong results."