CardiacAssist, Inc. Surpasses 1300 TandemHeart System ...( Circulatory assist device's high n...)

Circulatory assist device's high net flow rate supports a multitude of

highly complex procedures in life threatening situations

PITTSBURGH, June 19 /PRNewswire/ -- CardiacAssist, Inc., a Pittsburgh- based medical device company that develops, manufacturers and markets cardiac assist devices, has announced the completion of the 1300th worldwide procedure utilizing the TandemHeart System. This is indicative of TandemHeart's increasing acceptance and use by cardiologists and surgeons. The TandemHeart System is unique in helping heart failure patients survive both heart attacks and high risk procedures, while providing versatility to physicians in choosing the time, place and type of treatments.

The TandemHeart System is now used in over 100 heart centers across the U.S. Ten prestigious heart centers were recently active in helping CardiacAssist, Inc. surpass the 1300th procedure for its TandemHeart System. These ten heart centers include:

-- Brigham & Women's Hospital in Boston, MA

-- Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, OH

-- Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA.

-- Lahey Clinic in Burlington, MA

-- Lenox Hill in New York City, NY

-- Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN

-- Mt. Sinai in New York City, NY

-- Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane, WA

-- St. Luke's Hospital in Kansas City, MO

-- Texas Heart Institute in Houston, TX

In each situation the TandemHeart System was selected for its high net flow rate of up to 5 lpm in the Cath Lab or up to 8 lpm in the OR as well as its flexibility and rapid deployment potential. There are a variety of FDA cleared devices that provide extracorporeal circulatory support, but all others offer less than half the net flow and hemodynamic support of the TandemHeart System.

The TandemHeart System is the only 5 lpm net flow, percutaneous "extracorporeal circulatory support" device approved by the FDA for sale
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