Medtronic's In.Pact Falcon yields positive outcomes in small coronary arteries

One-year data from an Italian multicenter randomized controlled trial of the In.Pact Falcon drug-eluting balloon from Medtronic (MDT) demonstrate positive and durable clinical results with the novel angioplasty device in the treatment of stenotic de novo lesions in small coronary arteries, according to a presentation made here today to interventional cardiologists attending EuroPCR. The new data come from the Balloon Elution and Late Loss Optimization, or BELLO, study, which enrolled 182 patients across 15 hospitals in Italy to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of two medical devices: Medtronic's IN.PACT Falcon drug-eluting balloon, or DEB, and the Taxus drug-eluting stent from Boston Scientific (BSX). Nearly two-thirds of the vessels treated in the BELLO study with the drug-eluting balloon were smaller than 2.25mm in diameter, for which no drug-eluting stent is currently available.