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| Covidien is launching its OneShot device overseas--courtesy of Covidien |
Covidien ($COV) has quickly caught up to its competitors in the renal denervation space, launching its OneShot device overseas after getting a CE mark last year.
Much like Medtronic's ($MDT) Symplicity, OneShot uses radiofrequency energy to deaden the nerves in the arterial wall and lower blood pressure in hypertensive patients. However, Covidien's device is also a balloon-based catheter, inflating to keep arteries open while it treats.
Now, Covidien is rolling OneShot out in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Latin America, the company said, joining Medtronic, St. Jude Medical ($STJ) and Boston Scientific ($BSX), the only firms with renal denervation devices on the market anywhere.
The hypertension-treating devices have snagged headlines over the past 18 months as analysts predict they'll bring in $2.8 billion a year by 2020. So far, EU doctors have been ecstatic about how well renal denervation works on patients with drug-resistant high blood pressure, and many say it's only a matter of time before the treatment is indicated for all types of hypertension.
All that hype has meant breaking out the checkbook for the world's largest devicemakers, and Covidien acquired Maya Medical last year in a deal worth up to $230 million to get its hands on OneShot. Back in 2010, Medtronic spent $800 million on Symplicity inventor Ardian, and Boston Scientific nabbed 2012 Fierce 15 winner Vessix Vascular for $425 million last fall.
Covidien is last of the players to commercialize its device, but the company says its treatment will carve out a market share thanks to its short procedure time. Plus, the market is huge: NIH says there are about 1 billion people suffering from hypertension around the world, and Covidien estimates that up to 15% of them don't respond to pharmaceutical therapy.
- here's the announcement
Special Report: Renal Denervation - The Next Big Thing in Medical Devices