Concentric Medical and the Merci Retrieval System(R) Highlighted at the 2010 International Stroke Conference

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., March 9 /PRNewswire/ -- The International Stroke Conference (ISC) held February 24 through February 26, 2010 in San Antonio, Texas brought together physicians from around the world to share data and discuss best practices in the evaluation and treatment of stroke. Stroke is the third leading cause of death and the primary cause of severe disability in the U.S.

Concentric Medical, Inc., the global leader in acute ischemic stroke intervention, reported that numerous ISC discussions highlighted the use of the Merci Retriever® for acute ischemic stroke intervention. Included in these discussions were eight presentations on topics including treatment of patients beyond six hours of symptom onset, treatment of patients over 80 years in age, use of combined therapies such as IV thrombolytic with mechanical embolectomy, as well as patient management topics including the use of general anesthesia during interventional procedures and patient selection.

Featured in the Clinical Science: Key Findings and First Looks session was the latest update on Concentric's Merci Registry - the largest prospective, real-world collection of data on the use of the Merci Retriever in acute ischemic stroke. It includes 625 patients with completed 90 day follow-up out of 814 enrolled with 36 contributing centers from the U.S. and Europe. This update concluded that real world use of the Merci embolectomy procedure yields similar clinical outcomes, safety data and recanalization rates compared to those observed in MERCI and Multi MERCI, two previously completed pivotal trials that constitute the basis for FDA approval of the Merci embolectomy device as a recanalization tool for patients with acute stroke due to large vessel occlusion. It was also reported that data from the Merci Registry, consistent with the findings from MERCI and Multi MERCI, as well as several other studies investigating the use of intra-arterial recanalization techniques in patients with large vessel intracranial occlusions, demonstrates that successful recanalization is strongly associated with higher rates of favorable clinical outcomes and with lower mortality rates.

Tudor G. Jovin, M.D., UPMC Stroke Institute Fellowship Program Director and co-director of the UPMC Center for Neuroendovascular Therapy, who presented the update on the Merci Registry, commented, "The Merci Registry real-world use of the Merci Retriever demonstrates results that are consistent with the results obtained in the MERCI and Multi MERCI trials. The data continue to support Merci embolectomy as an effective and safe tool for revascularizing occluded intracranial vessels in eligible patients with acute ischemic stroke."

Maria Sainz, President and CEO of Concentric Medical, said "The Merci Registry illustrates Concentric's commitment to bringing meaningful clinical evidence of mechanical intervention to the stroke community and is critical for advancing stroke therapy. It was very satisfying to see greater attendee interest, attention and program coverage of mechanical intervention at the 2010 ISC."

Between the Merci Registry and the MERCI trials, Concentric has enrolled over 1,000 patients in clinical studies allowing deeper analyses of specific subsets of patients with acute ischemic stroke.

About Concentric Medical

Concentric Medical is located in Mountain View, California, and was founded in August 1999. The company manufactures and markets the Merci Retrieval System®, a minimally invasive device delivered by a neurointerventionalist into the brain to restore blood flow by removing blood clots that cause ischemic stroke. The Merci Retrieval System is available in over 500 leading stroke centers around the world, and has been the subject of two successful clinical trials, MERCI and Multi MERCI. Concentric Medical estimates that over 10,000 patients have been treated with its devices.

About Acute Ischemic Stroke

Stroke is the third leading cause of death in the developed world and the leading cause of serious long-term disability. Ischemic stroke represents over 85% of strokes and occurs when a blockage or clot develops in one of the arteries supplying blood to the brain. In 2004 the FDA cleared Concentric Medical's Merci Retriever® for use in patients who are ineligible for IV-tPA or who fail to respond to IV-tPA therapy. This pioneering device created a departure from the historic method of caring for stroke patients and offered physicians and patients a long-awaited option for stroke intervention.

For more information about Concentric Medical, please visit www.concentric-medical.com.

SOURCE Concentric Medical