Beijing, China – The 17th edition of China Interventional Therapeutics (CIT 2019) was unveiled at China National Convention Center in Beijing, China, on March 28, 2019. This edition of CIT followed the theme of “The Next Ten Years - Cooperation, Innovation, Transition” and gathered the global healthcare professionals in the field of PCI to discuss the cutting-edge scientific topics. Shanghai MicroPort Medical (Group) Co., Ltd. (“MicroPort®”) attended the event with the innovative products in the fields of interventional cardiology, structural heart disease therapy, cardiac rhythm management (CRM), and endovascular and peripheral vascular disease therapy. MicroPort® hosted a series of events such as satellite symposiums and forum for young and middle-aged doctors, which caught wide attention from the healthcare professionals at CIT 2019.
Latest Clinical Results of Bioresorbable Stent Firesorb®
During the session of Late Breaking Clinical Trials and First Report Investigations at CIT 2019, Prof. Bo Xu from Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Fuwai Hospital delivered a speech on the First-in-Man Study of the Firesorb® Bioresorbable Rapamycin Target Eluting Coronary Scaffold System ("Firesorb®") in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease (FUTURE-I). Firesorb® features thin strut thickness and target eluting design, with highly potential to reduce the long-term events.
The FUTURE-I, a prospective and single center trial, is the first study for Firesorb®. 45 patients with single de novo coronary artery lesions were enrolled. The primary endpoint is target lesion failure (composite of cardiac death, target vessel myocardial infarction, or ischemia-driven target lesion revascularization). Angiography and IVUS were performed before and after each stent implantation procedure, and OCT was only performed after it. During the 3-year follow-up, the FUTURE-I Study devided these patients into two different follow-up cohorts. The two cohorts of patients underwent angiographic, IVUS and OCT follow-up at different times. (Cohort 1: 6 and 24 months; Cohort 2: 12 and 36 months)
The primary endpoint target lesion failure is 0% at 3 years follow-up, with the patient-oriented composite endpoint ("PoCE", including all-cause mortality, all myocardial infarction and any revascularization) is 2.2%. OCT in 3 years follow-up showed that no significant difference in strut level analysis, but a rising trend and significant statistic difference in neointimal area, proportion of covered strut and mean thickness of strut coverage. The outcome proved that the biodegradable rapamycin eluting stent Firesorb®, which is based on PLLA, is one of the viable safe and effective solutions for the single de novo coronary artery lesions patients.
Luncheon Satellite Symposium: One Belt, One Road, One Healthcare
The Luncheon Satellite Symposium: One Belt, One Road, One Healthcare which sponsored by MicroPort® took place on March 29. This symposium invited healthcare professionals from the Belt and Road countries including Thailand, Pakistan, Iran and Indonesia. And the contributions and cooperations made by MicroPort® for the PCI development in this countries recent years were presented, as the Chinese government was pushing ahead with the Belt and Road Initiate. The satellite symposium was chaired by Prof. Weifeng Shen from Ruijin Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Prof. Yundai Chen from Chinese PLA General Hospital and Prof. Jinghua Liu from Beijing Anzhen Hospital of Capital Medical University.
At first, Prof. Wasan Udayachalerm gave a speech of PCI development and background in Thailand. Prof. Ahmad Fawad from Pakistan then shared Pakistan cardiovascular intervention progress and recent medical research. He introduced PCI development and predicted the future direction. Prof. Ata Firouzi from Iran showed the current situation of cardiac intervention and medical education, and used groups of data to show the development status of Iranian cardiology. Then Prof. Doni Firman from Indonesia demonstrated PCI situation from multiple perspectives. Prof. William Hau from Chinese University of Hong Kong delivered a speech titled “How China’s ‘Belt and Road’ Initiative Helps on Increasing the Adoption of Invasive Imaging for Southeast Asian Countries”, which summarized the development in cardiac intervention field in Southeast Asia and introduced China’s helps to the development of invasive imaging technology lately.
At last, Prof. Junqing Yang from Guangdong General Hospital gave an introduction of the current handling, diagnosis and treatment of heart diseases in China. He concluded the speech by saying “Medicine is without borders. Diseases are the common enemy of the whole humanity. We may not be able to eradicate diseases, but we have been making continuous efforts for the sake of human health. China and the Belt and Road countries are mostly developing countries. We have a long way to go. Therefore, we need to be untied to seek the best solutions to diseases.”
Prior to the CIT 2019, an expert group comprising more than 40 Latin American or Asia Pacific healthcare professionals from the Belt and Road countries visited the Shanghai headquarters of MicroPort® from March 25 to 26. MicroPort® Chief International Business Officer Mr. Jonathan Chen welcomed these visitors and presented the development history, business segments and development blueprint of MicroPort®, with a focus on the company’s globalization strategy and the current state of the international business. Currently, MicroPort® products have entered over ten Belt and Road countries such as India, Pakistan, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Poland, Romania, Korea and Turkey. MicroPort® also proactively participate in the provision of aids to the Belt and Road countries in international exchange activities and boost the scientific exchanges between the healthcare professionals from the Belt and Road countries and China.
Twilight Symposium: Innovation and Development of Chinese-made Medial Devices
The Twilight Symposium: Innovation and Development of Chinese-made Medial Devices which sponsored by MicroPort® took place on March 30. The symposium was chaired by Academician Runlin Gao from Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Fuwai Hospital, Prof. Weifeng Shen from Ruijin Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Prof. Zheng Zhang from the First Hospital of Lanzhou University, Prof. Andreas Baumbach from Queen Mary University of London, Prof. Alexandra Lansky from Yale University, and Prof. Jose Luis Leiva Pons from Hospital Central "Dr. Ignacio Morones Prieto".
Director Bo Xu from Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Fuwai Hospital first gave a speech named “From Firehawk to Firesorb: China’s Original Technology and Clinical Research Innovation”, which introduced the development history of the MicroPort® coronary stent products to the audience. The clinical results of the MicroPort® Firehawk® TARGET AC trial was published in the world leading medical journal the Lancet in 2018, which is also the first time that clinical data from a China manufactured drug eluting stent has been published in the Lancet since its first publication nearly 200 years ago. The clinical and imaging results at 3 years of the Firesorb® stent FUTURE-I study which announced at CIT 2019 also indicated the safety and efficacy of Firesorb® biodegradable stent, which sheds light on the prospect of biodegradable stents.
Prof. Daxin Zhou from Zhongshan Hospital Affiliated to Fudan University spoke of the innovative design of MicroPort® CardioFlow’s Transcatheter Aortic Valve System(“VitaFlow®”). The design of inner and outer skirts of VitaFlow® effectively reduces the occurrence of paravalvular leak; The design of low density cells facilitates better alignment during deployment; The design of large cells reserve room for coronary access. The delivery system of VitaFlow® applies a motorized handle to deploy the valve, bettering the manipulation and compatibility during procedure. VitaFlow® II Transcatheter Aortic Valve and Retrievable Delivery System (“VitaFlow® II”), the second generation system, achieves retrievable function based on the same structure as VitaFlow® and an innovative sheath design. It solves the problem of difficult positioning to some great degree, and further satisfies the demand for precision in interventional procedures to effectively increase the success rate.
Prof. Lianjun Gao from the First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University spoke of the high quality and unique features of MicroPort® Sorin CRM’s (“MSC”) Chinese-made Rega® Family Implantable Pacemakers, as well as the single-center clinical experience with the product at the hospital. Prof. Gao said MSC followed a path of domestic manufacturing, which combined Made-in-China with Created-in-China, to provide the Chinese patients with the high-quality pacemakers featuring modern pacing functions including small sizes, long service life, automatic management, physiological pacing and disease management. The pacemakers, demonstrating steady clinical performance, broke the perennial dominance of imported products in China’s pacemaker market and launched the new quest for domestic manufacturing of high-end medical devices, especially the pacemakers.
At the end, MicroPort® Chief Technology Officer Dr. Qiyi Luo delivered a speech of history and gene of the creation and innovation of MicroPort® cardiovascular devices. He summarized the innovative R&D results for cardiac devices in the past over 20 years. And he also presented the MicroPort® product portfolio in the segments of cardiovascular, electrophysiology, pacemakers and heart valves, which caught the attention and triggered discussion of the healthcare professionals in attendance.
Prof. Weifeng Shen recognized that MicroPort® ranked first among the domestic medical device companies in terms of the ratio of R&D investment against revenue. He commented, “MicroPort® takes the initiative to commit to social responsibilities. The company’s management and R&D teams are dedicated to close communication with the medical community. They ensure the future R&D direction and products are endorsed by both the professionals and the patients, and make an all-out effort to build a brand where the patients come first.” He added that MicroPort® adroitly followed every community’s reasonable advices for the improvement of the products, so that the image of the MicroPort® brand and products outshine those of the company’s compatriots. Prof. Lansky commented that the MicroPort® products for the treatment of heart diseases, and even its all product portfolio, are highly admirable for a company with global vision and ambition.
The Twilight Symposium was live-streamed on the DrKing online platform with a record number of viewers, making a brand new presentation of MicroPort® in the age of internet.
MicroPort® Enlightenment and Junior Meets Senior – MicroPort® Helps Accelerate of Young Doctors’ Growth
During CIT 2019, MicroPort® also held the events of MicroPort® Enlightenment Hands on Center and Young and Middle-aged Doctors Forum to help the young doctors at grassroots and mid-levels improve diagnostic and treatment skills by means of simulator operations, KOL lectures and case presentations.
On March 28, MicroPort® Enlightenment Hands on Center, which was a key event co-hosted by MicroPort® and the organizing committee of CIT 2019, was unveiled. The MicroPort® Enlightenment Hands on Center is a newly created simulator-based internship and training center of MicroPort®. It deployed four new generation simulators realizing mock interventional operations to provide the young doctors at grassroots and mid-levels with a real-situation educational platform for case-handling tactics.
The internship center held lectures given by the core CIT healthcare professionals including Prof. Bo Luan from the People’s Hospital of Liaoning Province, Prof. Shuxuan Jin from Renji Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine and Prof. Hongwei Pan from Hunan Provincial People’s Hospital. Under the guidance of the lecturers, the young doctors obtained a deeper understanding of the cases’ handling and then exercised the PCI operations on the simulators. Prof. Bo Luan commented, “The center’s use of simulators is a highlight. The education on the choice of lesion types and handling of frequent complications, in particular, enables the young doctors at grassroots and mid-levels to better combine theories with clinical interventional operations and thus achieve the transition from theories to practice.”
On March 29, the Young and Middle-aged Doctors Forum under the theme “Junior Meets Senior: Complex Case Reviews” held by MicroPort® CIT took the stage at CIT 2019. The event aimed to provide a platform for dialogs and exchanges between young doctors at grassroots and mid-levels and senior surgeons. The event was moderated by Prof. Jian Liu from Peking University People’s University and chaired by Prof. Zuyi Yuan from the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University, Prof. Juying Qian from Zhongshan Hospital Affiliated to Fudan University, Prof. Jinghua Liu from Beijing Anzhen Hospital of Capital Medical University, Prof. Ning Tan from Guangdong General Hospital, and Prof. Jingbo Hou from the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University.
The event had been open for nationwide submissions of outstanding cases prior to CIT 2019. After three rounds of painstaking selections by the CIT expert panel, a total of five outstanding cases beat the others and were unveiled at the event. In a break from the previous editions, this edition adopted the “Junior Meets Senior” model, where several pairs of senior healthcare professionals (Seniors) and the sector’s elites (Juniors) competed in event. In the end, Prof. Yue Li from the First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University and Dr. Chuanbao Li from Qilu Hospital of Shandong University placed first.
Prof. Jingbo Hou commented after the event, “The event was organized in a splendid manner. Today’s young doctors at grassroots and mid-levels are in shortage of no technical trainings but tactical trainings and the trainings with respect to the command of disease and patient management. Therefore, the ‘Junior Meets Senior’ model, where they jointly discussed the disease-handling skills and tactics, plays an important part to improve the overall performance of young doctors at grassroots and mid-levels.
During CIT 2019, the joint booth of MicroPort® mainly displayed the cardiovascular products, which were joined by the products in the business segments of CRM and electrophysiology, structural heart diseases, and endovascular and peripheral vascular diseases. The joint booth comprehensively presented multiple innovative research results of MicroPort® in the interventional areas. MicroPort® also sponsored the Primary Scene Livestreaming, which gathered top-tier healthcare professionals to discuss and give in-depth analysis of cutting-edge technology topics in the field, providing very important guidance for the clinical practice of cardiovascular interventionalists. Meanwhile, MicroPort® particularly invited PCI healthcare professionals from various provinces and cities to take part in interviews on their satisfaction about the company’s products. The in-depth interviews collected feedbacks and clinical demands on the products in efforts to continuously improve the products in line with the actual needs of the clinicians.
As a leading innovation-driven, high-end medical device group from China, MicroPort® will continue to follow the rationale of “Eyes for Greatness, Hands on Details”, remain dedicated to the humanity, and innovate relentlessly. MicroPort® will step up the communication and exchange with doctors and listen to the clinical demands and suggestions from the clinicians, so as to provide the patients with the PCI integrated solutions with more safety and efficacy.