Join +750K new investors every month who copy stock picks from billionaire's portfoliosSign Up Free

New Indication For Medtronic's Bone Cement Gets 510(K) Nod

Published 06/24/2018, 11:34 PM
Updated 07/09/2023, 06:31 AM
MDT
-
SYK
-
ABMD
-
GHDX_old
-

Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT) continues to hit headlines with its steady strategic developments. Recently, the company caught investors’ attention on the receipt of expanded 510(k) clearances for the company’s Kyphon HV-R Bone Cement for fixation of pathological fractures of the sacral vertebral body. This new breakthrough is expected to expand the company’s Interventional Pain Therapies business within the broader Restorative Therapies Group (RTG).

Per Medtronic, the fixation will be done using sacral vertebroplasty or sacroplasty. With this expanded indication, the company will be able to broaden its commitment toward the treatment of pathological fractures of the vertebral body caused by osteoporosis, cancer or benign lesions. The company claims this advancement to offer clinicians more options in curing patients with sacral insufficiency fractures (SIF).

Notably, SIFs are a common cause for debilitating back pain. Per American Journal of Neuroradiology (ANJR), SIFs are a frequent yet often unsuspected reason behind low back pain in the elderly patients. Very recently, sacroplasty emerged as an alternative therapy for the treatment of SIFs. According to ANJR, prospective studies and case reports suggest that it is a safe and effective remedy.

Per Medtronic, SIFs show the symptoms of lumbar spine pathology. Going by studies, more than two-thirds of SIF patients fail to associate their pain with a traumatic event. Evidently, they are often being prescribed with conservative treatment options including physical therapy and prolonged bed rest. These are highly expensive choices inducing loss of productivity within the healthcare system. Also, patients put to bed rest are at a rising risk of pulmonary embolism and DVT as well as further muscle atrophy and bone loss.

Meanwhile, SIF patients treated with sacroplasty experience immediate pain relief, allowing them to resume daily activity and/or physical therapy without suffering pain and physical limitations. More encouragingly, the procedure of sacroplasty with HV-R cement is pretty simple owing to its minimally-invasive procedure and the therapy can be performed in an outpatient setting.

Demographic Change and SIF

Going by a report published in National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), epidemiologic changes in first and second world countries will inevitably lead to a constant increase of the grey populace. Also, per the United Nations data, global aging population (aged 60 years or above) came in at 962 million in 2017, more than double the figure registered in 1980, when the strength of senior citizens was 382 million worldwide. The number is again expected to grow twice as dense by 2050 when it is projected to reach nearly 2.1 billion.

Therefore, detection of SIF among elderly adults, is markedly gaining prominence with huge prospects for its treatment market. Hence, we believe Medtronic’s latest innovation in this space to be well-timed and strategic.

Price Performance

Medtronic has outperformed the industry in three months’ time. The stock has gained 9.9% compared with the industry's rise of 7.4%.

Key Picks

Medtronic currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked stocks in the broader medical space are Genomic Health (NASDAQ:GHDX) , Abiomed (NASDAQ:ABMD) and Stryker Corp. (NYSE:SYK) .

Genomic Health has an expected earnings growth rate of 187.5% for the second quarter of 2018. The stock sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Abiomed has a projected long-term earnings growth rate of 27% and a Zacks Rank of 1.

Stryker has a projected long-term earnings growth rate of 9.7%. The stock carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

The Hottest Tech Mega-Trend of All

Last year, it generated $8 billion in global revenues. By 2020, it's predicted to blast through the roof to $47 billion. Famed investor Mark Cuban says it will produce "the world's first trillionaires," but that should still leave plenty of money for regular investors who make the right trades early.

See Zacks' 3 Best Stocks to Play This Trend >>



ABIOMED, Inc. (ABMD): Free Stock Analysis Report

Medtronic PLC (MDT): Free Stock Analysis Report

Stryker Corporation (SYK): Free Stock Analysis Report

Genomic Health, Inc. (GHDX): Free Stock Analysis Report

Original post

Zacks Investment Research

Latest comments

Loading next article…
Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.