With National Wear Red Day approaching on February 7, 2020, leading data and analytics company GlobalData highlights that the prevalence of heart failure is growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2% each year. Therefore, raising awareness is imperative and innovation is constantly pushing the medical device industry to continue improving treatment for patients and patient outcomes.

GlobalData estimates that the mechanical circulatory support devices market for heart failure will reach $1.5bn by 2028 and the LVAD market will grow at a CAGR of approximately 6%. This is good news for manufacturers such as Abbott, which recently announced the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) approval for the implantation of its HeartMate 3 left ventricular assist device (LVAD) via a latheral thoracotomy – a less-invasive approach than open heart surgery.

Sheryl Tang, Principal Medical Devices Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “While the number of patients with end-stage heart failure continues to grow each year, we estimate that less than 5% are on a mechanical circulatory support device. Given the invasive nature of implanting an LVAD through open surgery, only a small percentage of patients are eligible to undergo the intervention.

“The lateral thoracotomy approach provides the opportunity for more patients to receive an LVAD. While Medtronic had a head start in obtaining a similar FDA approval for its HVAD device in 2018, Abbott’s HeartMate 3 was the market leader in 2019. Now that both companies are able to implant the device using a less invasive approach, the market leader will be determined by which device demonstrates superiority in patient outcomes.”