News: C.R. Bard Receives FDA Premarket Approval of the Lutonix 035 Drug-Coated Balloon as the First and Only DCB for the Treatment of Patients with Dysfunctional AV Fistulae

C. R. Bard, Inc. announced the Lutonix 035 Drug-Coated Balloon PTA Catheter (DCB) has been granted premarket approval (PMA) by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for a new indication and is now available for sale in the United States. With this approval, the Lutonix 035 DCB Catheter becomes the first and only drug-coated balloon that is FDA approved as safe and effective in end stage renal disease (ESRD) patients with stenotic lesions in dialysis arteriovenous (AV) fistulae. This latest approval adds to the prior FDA indication of the Lutonix 035 DCB Catheter for the treatment of superficial femoral artery (SFA) and popliteal artery disease.

 

The FDA approval was based on the results of the LUTONIX AV Clinical Trial, the first investigational device exemption (IDE) trial using drug-coated balloons in patients with stenotic lesions in AV fistulae. The follow-up results from randomized patients who were treated with the Lutonix 035 DCB Catheter demonstrated safety comparable to uncoated balloons.

 

The Lutonix 035 DCB Catheter also demonstrated a sustained clinical benefit compared to conventional angioplasty through 12 months:

 

Globally, there are more than 2 million patients undergoing hemodialysis treatments¹ — each therapy session lasting approximately four hours and occurring up to three times per week — in a hospital or dialysis center.² To receive this therapy, many patients depend on an AV fistula³, which is the connection of an artery to a vein created by a vascular surgeon. For these patients, restenosis is a common problem and hinders treatment. Some patients require up to eight reinterventions per year to maintain AV fistula function4, their lifeline for managing renal disease.

 

“For patients undergoing hemodialysis for kidney failure — who already spend a significant portion of their time undergoing dialysis and other treatments — repeated reinterventions to maintain AV access can be an added burden, with many patients returning as frequently as every other month,” said Scott O. Trerotola, MD, Stanley Baum Professor of Radiology, Associate Chair and Chief, Interventional Radiology, Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania and Principal Investigator of the LUTONIX AV Clinical Trial. “The Lutonix 035 DCB Catheter provides another option for physicians. It’s intended to offer patients with end-stage renal disease fewer interruptions in treatment and less time undergoing access maintenance, potentially leading to improved patient satisfaction and quality of life.”

 

About the LUTONIX AV Clinical Trial. The LUTONIX AV Clinical Trial included 285 subjects with lesion locations ranging from AV anastomoses at the wrist to the axillosubclavian junction at the shoulder. The trial design incorporated core laboratory evaluations on all patients, monitoring of all data points, independent Clinical Events Committee (CEC) adjudication and Data and Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) review. The two-year study is ongoing with additional endpoints at 18 and 24 months.

 

About the LUTONIX 035 DCB Catheter. The LUTONIX 035 Drug-Coated Balloon PTA Catheter (DCB) is an angioplasty balloon coated with a therapeutic dose of the drug paclitaxel.

 

The new indication is for percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) in stenotic lesions of dysfunctional native arteriovenous (AV) dialysis fistulae that are 4 mm to 12 mm in diameter and up to 80 mm in length.