Drug-Eluting Stent promotes smooth procedures.

Press Release Summary:



CYPHER SELECT(TM) Plus Stent carries CE mark and is designed to help interventional cardiologists reach and treat coronary artery blockages. In addition to flexible stent design and short tip, delivery system features lubricious CYPH2ONIC(TM) Hydrophilic Coating Technology to facilitate delivery of stent even when lesion is located in tortuous blood vessel.



Original Press Release:



Cordis Corporation Launches CYPHER SELECT(TM) Plus Stent



PARIS, September -- Shipment of First Third-Generation Drug-eluting Stent Starts

Cordis Corporation, the world leader in the drug-eluting stent market, announced today the launch of the CYPHER SELECT(TM) Plus Stent. The first third-generation drug-eluting stent is now available to physicians and patients in many markets around the world, including countries in Western and Eastern Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East. Cordis expects to offer the CYPHER SELECT(TM) Plus Stent in most markets outside the United States and Japan within the next two quarters.

"This is welcome news for interventional cardiologists and patients worldwide," said Philip Urban, M.D., F.E.S.C., Director of Invasive Cardiology, La Tour Hospital in Geneva, Switzerland, and the coordinating investigator of e-SELECT Registry, a global registry designed to assess the performance of the CYPHER SELECT(TM) Sirolimus-eluting Coronary Stent and CYPHER SELECT(TM) Plus Stent in daily clinical practice. "By combining an innovative delivery technology with clinically proven efficacy and safety, the CYPHER SELECT(TM) Plus Stent will enhance a physician's ability to successfully reach and treat coronary artery blockages."

In addition to its flexible stent design and short tip, the CYPHER SELECT(TM) Plus Stent Delivery System features the CYPH2ONIC(TM) Hydrophilic Coating Technology. According to Cordis' lab testing results, this coating is significantly more lubricious than previous sirolimus-eluting stent delivery systems. This combination aims to facilitate the delivery of the stent even when the lesion is located in a tortuous blood vessel and to allow interventional cardiologists to complete smoother procedures.

The CYPHER SELECT(TM) Plus Stent technology adds to a long tradition of innovation at Cordis. The company is the developer and manufacturer of the first drug-coated stent, the CYPHER(R) Sirolimus-eluting Coronary Stent, and the first next-generation drug-coated stent, the CYPHER SELECT(TM) Stent. Collectively, Cordis' sirolimus-eluting stents are widely considered a major breakthrough in interventional cardiology.

Stents are small metal mesh tubes used to prop open blood vessels after an angioplasty is completed. Cordis' drug-eluting stents also release the drug sirolimus to prevent re-blockage on the treatment site, a common occurrence with bare-metal stents. Re-blockages require patients to return to the hospital for additional procedures, which potentially include open-heart bypass surgery.

Since their introduction, the CYPHER(R) Stent and the CYPHER SELECT(TM) Stent have jointly been chosen by cardiologists worldwide to treat more than 2 million patients with coronary artery disease. Their safety and efficacy is supported by a robust clinical trial program that includes more than 60 studies, with many additional independent clinical trials, and hundreds of publications in the most respected medical journals.

"The CYPHER SELECT(TM) Plus Stent brings exceptional deliverability to the unsurpassed efficacy and safety profile for which the sirolimus-eluting stents are widely recognized," said Dennis Donohoe, M.D., Vice President, Worldwide Clinical and Regulatory Affairs, Cordis Corporation. "With up to five years of clinical follow-up, Cordis' drug-eluting stents continue to be used by physicians worldwide for a broad range of patients, from complex to routine."

The CYPHER SELECT(TM) Plus Stent received the CE mark in June 2006. The mark, which stands for "European Conformity" in French, signals that a device has been approved for commercialization in the European Union. It also facilitates expedient regulatory approval in many countries outside Europe.

About the CYPHER(R) Stent

The CYPHER(R) Stent has been chosen by cardiologists worldwide to treat more than 2 million patients with coronary artery disease. The safety and efficacy of the device is supported by a robust clinical trial program that includes more than 60 studies, inclusive of independent clinical trials, that examine the performance of the CYPHER(R) Stent in a broad range of patients.

Developed and manufactured by Cordis Corporation, the CYPHER(R) Stent is currently available in more than 80 countries and has the longest-term clinical follow-up of any drug-eluting stent. The first next-generation drug-eluting stent, the CYPHER SELECT(TM) Stent, was launched in Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America and Canada in 2003. The CYPHER SELECT(TM) Plus Stent, the first third-generation drug-eluting stent, received the CE mark in June 2006 and is now available in many markets outside the United States.

About Cordis Corporation

Cordis Corporation, a Johnson & Johnson company, is a worldwide leader in developing and manufacturing interventional vascular technology. Through the company's innovation, research and development, physicians worldwide are better able to treat the millions of patients who suffer from vascular disease.

Contacts: Terri Mueller, Johnson & Johnson MD&D, EMEA, Office: +33-(1) 55-00-4433, Mobile: +33-6-27-36-65-88, Email: TMueller1@jnjfr.jnj.com. Mariela Melendez, Cordis Corporation, Office: +1-(786)-313-2776, Mobile: +1-(786)-218-4084, Email: MMelen10@crdus.jnj.com

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