ATS Medical Announces First North American Commercial Implant of the ATS 3f Aortic Bio...( Follows Canadian regulatory...)

Follows Canadian regulatory approval of the ATS 3f Valve

MINNEAPOLIS, April 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- ATS Medical, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATSI), manufacturer and marketer of state-of-the-art cardiac surgery products and services, today announced the first North American commercial implant of the ATS 3f(R) Aortic Bioprosthesis. Canadian regulatory approval was received at the end of December, 2007. The first implant was performed by Benoit de Varennes, MD, MSc, FRSC, Chairman, Division of Cardiac Surgery at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. The patient was a 76-year-old man with aortic valve stenosis. The valve replacement was successful and the patient has been discharged from the hospital in good condition.

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The ATS 3f Aortic Bioprosthesis incorporates revolutionary design concepts intended to preserve native aortic root geometry and function. Through this unique approach, the prosthesis more closely mimics native valve function providing excellent hemodynamic performance that may contribute to improvements in key determinants of cardiovascular performance such as coronary blood flow and left ventricular mass regression. Data suggests that physiologic stresses, a detriment to bioprosthetic valve longevity, may be more efficiently distributed throughout the prosthetic's leaflets.

"The ATS 3F valve incorporates important characteristics of many other valves all in one product. The hemodynamic characteristics are very good and the valve offers the potential for longer durability. Previous stentless valve designs appeared to have good hemodynamic performance, but compl
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