Leading medical devices player,
Medtronic
(
MDT
) has strengthened its Diabetes portfolio with the launch of a
remote glucose monitor dubbed mySentry. This first-of-its-kind
technology would enable a parent or a caregiver to monitor from
another room a patient's MiniMed Paradigm Real-Time Revel System,
an insulin pump with built-in continuous glucose monitoring
("CGM").
This product could be of great help for parents, who could be
alerted through an alarm in the middle of the night if their
child's glucose levels are falling. Consequently, they can take the
required action to prevent an episode of low blood sugar
(hypoglycemia). This is significant particularly for patients with
type 1 diabetes, as nighttime hypoglycemia remains a big concern
for the caregivers.
William Tamborlane, Chief of Pediatric Endocrinology and Deputy
Director of the Yale Center for Clinical Investigation considers
mySentry to provide parents with added nighttime protection as they
can avoid the need of waking up a couple of times every night to
check their child's blood sugar level. As per estimates, 75% of all
episodes of severe hypoglycemia in children occur at night.
The last few quarters saw Medtronic reporting weaker sales from
its two largest segments - defibrillators and spinal implants. The
challenges witnessed in the US ICD market have also been felt
across the board and impacted Medtronic's competitors,
Boston Scientific
(
BSX
) and
St Jude Medical
(
STJ
).
To overcome these challenges, Medtronic is trying every means to
revive growth. This includes penetration of international markets,
portfolio expansion, focus on high-potential segments and
restructuring initiatives. These should benefit the company over
the long term.
The Diabetes segment, in this case, has been a point of focus
for the company and has been recording robust growth over the
recent past banking on approval of key products. In November 2011,
Medtronic received approval from the US Food and Drug
Administration ("FDA") for iPro2, a next generation Professional
CGM system. Approval of iPro2 is significant as professional CGM is
used by healthcare providers to reveal hypoglycemia and
hyperglycemia (high) glucose excursions that can aggravate the
condition of diabetic patients. These excursions often go
unnoticed with traditional A1C tests and standard glucose meter
measurements.
Medtronic currently retains a Zacks #3 Rank (short-term Hold
rating). We also maintain our long-term Neutral recommendation on
the stock.
BOSTON SCIENTIF (
BSX
): Free Stock Analysis Report
MEDTRONIC (
MDT
): Free Stock Analysis Report
ST JUDE MEDICAL (
STJ
): Free Stock Analysis Report
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