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Edwards Acquires Vectorious, FFR Revascularization, and Remote AFib Diagnosis September 8, 2025
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Together with
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“During residency, I was surprised to discover the profound influence that screening incentives have on primary care. I am not convinced they improve patient outcomes.”
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Wil Ward, MD
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Edwards Lifesciences took another step towards becoming a major player in remote heart failure monitoring, after fully acquiring Israeli startup Vectorious Medical Technologies for $497M in cash.
- This move marks the second half of Edwards’ two-phase purchase of Vectorious, having acquired 52% of the company two years ago and now securing the remaining 48% stake.
- It’s also part of a bigger trend with Edwards, which has spent the last couple of years expanding across interventional cardiology.
Vectorious’ monitoring device is known as the V-LAP system and it uses a minimally invasive approach to achieve continuous HF monitoring through a tiny, battery-free sensor implanted in the left atrium that wirelessly transmits left atrial pressure data.
- Patients wear an external unit for just one minute daily, which allows pressure data to be automatically transmitted to physicians via cloud connectivity.
- The device is similar to Abbott’s HeartPOD which is also a wireless, implantable device that monitors left atrial pressure.
Edwards’ decision to go all in on Vectorious’ technology is part of a wider trend of acquisitions ever since the company off-loaded its Critical Care business to BD for $4.2B, adding a range of interventional cardiology companies…
- JC Medical for its AVR technologies ($316M).
- JenaValve for its aortic stenosis / regurgitation system (currently under FTC review).
- Endotronix for its pulmonary artery pressure sensor ($1.2B combined with JenaValve).
- Early-stage TMVR company Innovalve Bio Medical for $300M.
- And a $16M investment in surgical mitral valve startup Affluent Medical.
So where does Vectorious’ V-LAP fit into the Edwards acquisition spree? It’s likely that the V-LAP technology will be complementary to Edwards’ earlier Endotronix acquisition which added the FDA-approved Cordella HF sensor to its portfolio.
- The Cordella sensor combines an implanted pulmonary artery sensor, a PA pressure reader, and a digital platform for home-based HF management.
- The combined cost of V-LAP and Cordella (potentially over $1B) puts Edwards deep into the remote HF monitoring game, signaling the company’s interest in prevention.
- This move also falls in line with the shifting paradigm of HF treatment as the HFSA and other cardiology societies begin to see HF as widely preventable rather than inevitable.
The Takeaway
Edwards has yet again shown it isn’t afraid to spend money to make money. Its acquisition of Vectorious marks another step toward either controlling the technology of the HF prevention market, or using it to develop something even more effective.
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- Picard Goes Public: Picard Medical closed its initial public offering and raised $17M to support its goal of developing total artificial heart technology for patients with end-stage heart failure. Picard’s subsidiary SynCardia develops, manufactures, and commercializes the SynCardia Total Artificial Heart which is an implantable system that assumes the full functions of a failing or failed human heart.
- Medtronic’s Redo-TAVR Expansion: Medtronic received an expanded FDA approval for Redo-TAVR using its Evolut TAVR system, allowing implantation of new valves inside previously failed TAVR valves for high-risk patients. With the expanded approval, severe aortic stenosis patients that are unsuitable for open-heart surgery now have a non-invasive option. The FDA expansion follows European CE Mark approval and is supported by Medtronic’s RESTORE study which evaluated long-term outcomes in 225 participants over five years.
- GLP-1s Reduce HF Hospitalization Risks: A cohort study of U.S. claims data suggests semaglutide and tirzepatide both substantially reduce HF hospitalization risk. Researchers analyzed 58k patients with obesity-related HFpEF and T2D and found that GLP-1 users had a significantly lower risk of hospitalization for heart failure or all-cause mortality compared to sitagliptin users (HR 0.58 and 0.42, respectively). The study also offered a head-to-head comparison of the two weight loss drugs and found that tirzepatide showed no meaningful advantage over semaglutide (HR 0.86).
- No Need for Anticoagulation Post-Ablation: In big news for post-ablation care, a new study out of Korea suggests it’s safer to discontinue oral anticoagulation following the procedure. Among 840 adults without atrial arrhythmia recurrence after catheter ablation, those who discontinued oral anticoagulation faced significantly lower composite rates of stroke, systemic embolism, and major bleeding (0.3% vs 2.2%). The benefits were likely due to reduced major bleeding events (0% vs 1.4%), with similar stroke rates between groups.
- Cleerly Touts Quantitative CT: Cleerly highlighted research presented at ESC 2025 from the CONFIRM2 trial using its LABS Plaque Analysis software. By measuring plaque burden, morphology, composition, and luminal obstruction, LABS Plaque Analysis improved the risk stratification of patients with higher AUC compared to other metrics like CAD-RADS (0.81 vs. 0.79), CAC scores (0.79 vs. 0.70), and the DUKE Index (0.81 vs. 0.76).
- FFR Guidance Improves Revascularization: FFR-guided complete revascularization could significantly improve outcomes in non-ST-elevation MI patients compared to culprit-only revascularization. A study of 478 patients compared the two revascularization methods and found that only 5.5% of the FFR-guided cohort experienced the primary composite outcome (all-cause death, nonfatal MI, any revascularization, stroke) compared to 13.6% of culprit-only patients. The better outcomes were primarily driven by reduced repeat revascularization procedures (3.0% vs 11.5%), supporting complete revascularization strategies in NSTEMI patients.
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- Screening For H. Pylori: Results from the SWEDEHEART trial suggest there isn’t much benefit to screening for Helicobacter pylori when it comes to reducing gastric bleeding risk in post acute MI patients. The study screened 18.5k MI patients for H. pylori and found that those who had the bacteria (23.6%) experienced a little more GI bleeding than those without (19.2 vs 16.8 events per 1,000 person-years). Despite the slight difference, researchers say routine H. pylori screening probably isn’t recommended for post-MI patients.
- RSV Vaccine Protects the Heart and Lungs: According to the DAN-RSV trial, RSV vaccination could provide added cardiorespiratory benefits in older adults. The trial randomized 131k adults aged 60+ to receive the RSV vaccine or no vaccine during Denmark’s 2024-2025 winter season and found that all-cause cardiorespiratory hospitalization was significantly lower in the vaccinated group (26.3 vs 29.2 events per 1,000 participant-years). All-cause cardiovascular hospitalization also showed a non-significant reduction (16.4 vs 17.7 events per 1,000 participant-years).
- Remote ECG for AFib Diagnosis: New research presented at ESC suggests remote ECG monitoring works when it comes to diagnosing AFib. The AMALFI trial randomized 5,000 individuals aged 65+ at moderate-to-high stroke risk to receive either a 14-day ECG patch monitor or usual care, finding that AFib was diagnosed in 6.8% of the intervention group versus 5.4% of controls after 2.5 years. The screening group had modestly increased anticoagulation exposure (1.63 vs 1.14 months) and stroke rates were similar between groups.
- CAC’s Long-Term Predictive Power: A new study in Radiology offers perhaps the best long-term evidence of coronary artery calcium’s value in predicting mortality risk, and the benefits of combining lung screening with CAC scoring. Researchers from the ELCAP CT lung cancer screening project calculated CAC scores in 8.8k ELCAP participants and followed them for a median of 23 years, finding that people with the highest CAC scores had elevated risk of cardiovascular and all-cause death (HR = 1.98 and 1.70, respectively).
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- Us2.ai’s AI HF Now Possible with Handheld Echo: The latest research shows Us2.ai’s software can take handheld echocardiography beyond its standard applications. Read this EHJ study about how swiftly and accurately Us2.ai’s HF detection software detects LVEF, closely matching expert human analysis of standard cart based echocardiograms.
- Redefining Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: Learn about the AGENT™ Drug-Coated Balloon from Boston Scientific and how this technology is expanding the treatment options for patients with in-stent restenosis in the U.S. Rx only. (Sponsored by Boston Scientific)
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- Tempus Receives FDA 510(k) Clearance for Tempus ECG-Low EF: Tempus announces the expansion of its Tempus ECG-AI portfolio with Tempus ECG-Low EF, software intended for use to analyze 12-lead ECG recordings and detect signs associated with having a low left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF less than or equal to 40%) in patients 40 years of age or older at risk of heart failure. It is not intended as a stand-alone diagnostic and positive results may suggest the need for further clinical evaluation. For Full Indications for Use, visit here.
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