Syncardia Systems announced that its Freedom portable driver use to power the Syncardia Total Artificial Heart has been shortlisted for “Most Innovative Cardiac Product of the Year” as part of the MEDTEC European Medical Device Technology (EMDT) Innovation Awards.
EMDT are the European awards dedicated to recognising achievements in the medical device sector.
Weighing approximately 6kg (13.5 lbs), the Freedom portable driver allows stable Total Artificial Heart patients to be discharged from the hospital while they wait for a matching donor heart. The Freedom driver is CE approved for use in Europe and undergoing an FDA-approved Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) clinical study in the USA.
“These awards are regarded as a universal benchmark of quality within the medical-device industry,” said Michael Garippa, CEO and president, SynCardia. “Being shortlisted is a tremendous achievement. The Freedom portable driver has been pivotal in the Total Artificial Heart becoming the new standard of care for end-stage biventricular heart failure.”
This year’s winners will be announced on 14 March 2012, at a special ceremony during MEDTEC Europe 2012, in the Atrium of the Messe Stuttgart in Stuttgart, Germany.
The Total Artificial Heart has FDA, Health Canada and CE approvals.
