Medtronic of Canada Ltd. has received regulatory approval from Health Canada's Therapeutic Products Directorate (TPD) for use of the Endeavor drug-eluting coronary stent (DES) system in the treatment of coronary artery disease. The company expects to begin commercial sales of the Endeavor stent in Canada soon.

Enabling a minimally-invasive alternative to open-heart bypass surgery, stents are tiny wire mesh tubes used to prop open coronary arteries that have been cleared of blockages to restore blood flow to the heart muscle. Approximately 90,000 stents are implanted in Canadian patients with coronary artery disease each year, according to research conducted by two of the ...