Medical devices major,
St. Jude Medical
, Inc. (
STJ
) recently won European CE Mark approval for its Eon family of
neurostimulators used to treat intractable chronic migraine. The
Eon family comprises the world's smallest Eon Mini neurostimulator
along with the Eon and EonC neurostimulators.
Earlier in September 2011, the company received CE Mark approval
for its Genesis neurostimulation system. The Eon family and the
Genesis neurostimulation system are designed for peripheral nerve
stimulation ("PNS") of the occipital nerve (spinal nerve) for
managing pain and disability associated with chronic migraine. The
devices work by delivering mild electrical pulses to leads placed
under the skin at the back of the head, stimulating the occipital
nerves.
Migraine is a debilitating condition which can last for hours or
days. The condition is characterized by symptoms such as headache,
sensitivity to light, noise and motion, nausea and vomiting.
According to World Health Organization ("WHO"), chronic migraine
ranks among the top 20 most disabling conditions in the world and
represents a vastly unmet medical need.
Per WHO, 10% of adults across the world suffer from migraine and
1.7%-4% complain of headache 15 or more days in a month. Per the
European Journal of Neurology, annual expenses on migraine
treatment amount to $111 billion in the European Union.
The CE Mark approval is backed by a large-scale clinical study
which evaluated the effectiveness of PNS to treat chronic migraine.
The data presented at the International Headache Congress in 2011
revealed that 65% of the patients reported excellent or good pain
relief. Hence, the Eon devices are safe and effective in reducing
the number of migraine headache days per month and are capable of
improving a patient's quality of life.
St. Jude recently realigned its Cardiac Rhythm Management ("CRM")
Division and Neuromodulation ("NMD") Division to form the
Implantable Electronic Systems Division ("IESD"). These latest Eon
family of neurostimulators are expected to boost the IESD's
products portfolio.
The company's Neuromodulation revenues are growing steadily,
benefiting from new spinal cord and Parkinson's disease devices as
well as sustained adoption of the Eon Mini implantable
neurostimulator. In the last reported second quarter of 2012,
Neuromodulation sales increased 2%, (up 5% in constant currency)
year over year to $106 million.
St. Jude is a leading medical device manufacturer with a solid rate
of growth over the past decade. We are impressed by its solid
fundamentals, healthy growth trajectory, strong product mix, robust
pipeline and cost management initiatives.
While a host of new growth drivers, including new products and cost
saving measures, are expected to boost results in 2013 and beyond,
we remain cautious about the increased competition, weakening Euro,
the soft CRM market and the overall tough macroeconomic conditions.
A still choppy CRM space overhangs on St. Jude and its peers
Medtronic
(
MDT
) and
Boston Scientific
(
BSX
). We currently have a Neutral recommendation on St. Jude, which
carries a short-term Zacks #3 Rank (Hold rating).
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