Dr. Berger: ABIOMED was founded more than 22 years ago for the express purpose of developing a totally implantable artificial human heart. The company's mission is to help make real the day when the cessation of heart function will not mean the end of life or the ability to enjoy life. Our artificial heart, the AbioCor', is now in clinical trials. The company has also worked to develop circulatory support or heart assist devices. We developed the first advanced circulatory support device to be approved by the FDA for commercial introduction in the United States: the BVS' 5000 Bi-Ventricular Support System. The BVS 5000 is used in more than 600 United States hospitals for acute treatment of patients whose hearts have failed but may recover. We've continued to develop our heart assist product lines and in 2003 introduced a next generation version of that acute heart support system, the AB5000_ Circulatory Support System. The AB5000 is a platform that we will develop over the next several years to treat larger groups of patients requiring circulatory support for longer periods of time.
TWST: Will the heart assist devices have a broader application than the
AbioCor?
Dr. Berger: Heart assist devices are appropriate for patients whose
natural hearts can still function if given support. The AbioCor
Replacement Heart is targeted at patients whose natural hearts are too
debilitated to support the patient, even with mechanical assistance.
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