Cardica Launches New Curved Tip Cartridge/reload To Microcutter XCHANGE® 30 Surgical Stapler Product Line

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Oct. 21, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Cardica, Inc. (Nasdaq: CRDC) today announced the availability of the curved tip cartridge for its MicroCutter XCHANGE^® 30 surgical stapling device. This cartridge has a curved atraumatic tip at the distal end which is designed to facilitate placement of the stapler on selected tissues.  Cardica is currently offering the cartridge commercially on a limited release basis, with a global launch anticipated later this year.

"The curved tip cartridge provides an enhanced stapling option for procedures where confined surgical spaces require exceptional control and maneuverability," said Dr. Brendan C. Visser, assistant professor of surgery at the Stanford University Medical Center and Palo Alto Veterans Affairs Health Care Center. "Taking the small size, large degree of articulation and curved tip together, this device has the potential to reduce the amount of tissue dissection, which could ultimately provide better patient outcomes."

"We developed this important line extension for the MicroCutter surgical stapler in response to identified clinical needs from surgeons from various specialties," commented Bernard A. Hausen, M.D., Ph.D., president and CEO of Cardica. "We believe this new cartridge will provide a surgeon added confidence when working in deeply recessed areas, where visibility is challenging, as the curved tip geometry allows for easier visualization intended to ensure that only the intended tissue is stapled."

The MicroCutter product line now includes the MicroCutter XCHANGE 30 five-millimeter stapler with 80 degrees of articulation as well as four cartridges: the white cartridge for thin tissue stapling with both straight and curved options; and the blue cartridge for medium tissue with both straight and curved options. Importantly, all cartridges are compatible with the recently launched new iteration of the XCHANGE 30 device.

About Cardica

Cardica designs and manufactures proprietary stapling and anastomotic devices for cardiac and laparoscopic surgical procedures. Cardica's technology portfolio is intended to reduce operating time and facilitate minimally-invasive and robot-assisted surgeries. Cardica's MicroCutter XCHANGE^® 30, a cartridge-based articulating surgical stapling device with a five-millimeter shaft diameter, is manufactured and cleared for use in a variety of gastrointestinal procedures and appendectomies in the United States, and is marketed for a wide range of surgical procedures in Europe. Cardica is developing the Cardica^® MicroCutter XCHANGE^® 45, a cartridge-based microcutter device that is being designed with an eight-millimeter shaft to be used in a variety of procedures, including bariatric, colorectal, thoracic and general surgery. The Cardica MicroCutter XCHANGE 45 product requires 510(k) clearance and CE Mark and is not yet commercially available in the U.S. or internationally. In addition, Cardica manufactures and markets its automated anastomosis systems, the C-Port^® Distal Anastomosis Systems and PAS-Port^® Proximal Anastomosis System for coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery, and has shipped over 52,000 units throughout the world.

To learn more about Cardica, please visit the company Website at www.Cardica.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

The statements in this press release regarding the expected benefits that surgeons and patients will receive from the curved tip cartridge for the MicroCutter XCHANGE^® 30 surgical stapler, including statements regarding the anticipated timing of the global launch of the curved tip cartridge, the enhanced control and maneuverability of the device and the potential to reduce the amount of tissue dissection and ultimately result in better patient outcomes, and the belief that the new cartridge will provide a surgeon added confidence and easier visualization to unsure that only the intended tissue is stapled, are "forward-looking statements." There are a number of important factors that could cause results to differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements, including: that surgeons may not use the new cartridge correctly, which could prevent the expected benefits from the new cartridge from being realized; that prospective customers may not perceive the benefits of the new version of the XCHANGE 30 to be sufficient to warrant its purchase; that prospective customers may be constrained by pricing pressures or purchasing requirements in the hospitals and facilities in which they work, which could prevent them from purchasing the new cartridge or the XCHANGE 30; as well as other risks detailed from time to time in Cardica's reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended June 30, 2014, under the caption "Risk Factors," filed on September 25, 2014. Cardica expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein. Readers are encouraged to read Cardica's reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, available at www.sec.gov.

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cardica-launches-new-curved-tip-cartridgereload-to-microcutter-xchange-30-surgical-stapler-product-line-923031007.html

SOURCE Cardica, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.cardica.com