Medtronic and Cardiovascular Health Alliance Launch Standardization Initiative for Hypertension Interventional Therapy at CIIE

On November 6, at the 5th China International Import Expo (CIIE), Medtronic and the Cardiovascular Health Alliance jointly launched the "Standardization Project for Hypertension Intervention and Diagnosis." This project will focus on the standardized implementation in China of innovative hypertension interventional treatments—Renal Denervation (RDN). Professor Yong Huo, Vice Chairman of the Cardiovascular Health Alliance and a professor at Peking University First Hospital, Professor Ningling Sun, Chairperson of the Hypertension Accreditation Center of the Cardiovascular Health Alliance and a professor at Peking University People's Hospital, Mr. Yushao Gu, Senior Vice President of Medtronic and President of Medtronic Greater China, Mr. Jian Deng, Vice President of Market Access, Supply Chain, and Business Operations Services at Medtronic Greater China, Ms. Shan Cao, Vice President of Corporate Affairs and Communications at Medtronic, and Mr. Jia Tao, Vice President of Coronary & Renal Denervation Business at Medtronic China, attended the event.

Hypertension, as a common chronic disease, is often overlooked by most patients due to its inconspicuous symptoms. By the time symptoms appear and medical attention is sought, organ function is often already in a state of failure, posing a serious threat to life, making it a true "silent killer." For the majority of hypertension patients, the main methods for stabilizing blood pressure are lifestyle interventions and antihypertensive drug treatments. However, both approaches require lifelong adherence and compliance from the patient. Concerns such as the belief that "all medications are somewhat toxic" may lead patients to stop taking medication without consulting their doctor due to fear of side effects, forget to take medication because of busy work schedules, or lose confidence in treatment due to poor blood pressure control. These situations can all cause more frequent fluctuations in the patient's blood pressure.

The emergence of Renal Denervation (RDN) has broken this treatment bottleneck. Over the past decade, Medtronic has been exploring the research and development of RDN therapy, accumulating a large amount of evidence-based medical evidence. This includes multiple randomized controlled trials verifying the effectiveness, safety, and durability of RDN therapy in hypertensive patients who are either on or off medication; as well as the world's largest-scale registry study confirming its broader applicability in real-world settings.

"RDN therapy is an innovative method to effectively control blood pressure through interventional treatment, which is of great significance for blood pressure management," introduced Professor Huo Yong. "With the joint efforts of all parties, the introduction and implementation of RDN therapy will promote public awareness, treatment rate, and control rate, providing another option for patients who cannot control their blood pressure with medication or who are unwilling to receive drug treatment."

At this year's CIIE, Medtronic's RDN therapy product—the Symplicity Spyral Renal Denervation Catheter (this product has not yet been launched in mainland China)—made another appearance. Thanks to its successful clinical application in the Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pilot Zone in Hainan Free Trade Port, it attracted significant attention. In addition, at this year’s CIIE booth, Medtronic added an RDN therapy experience session. Professor Huo Yong and Professor Sun Ningling were present on-site, personally operating the device and sharing the experience with the audience, which brought the event to a climax.

During the RDN therapy experience session, through simulated operations by professionals, the audience gained close-up insights into the surgical principles, procedural steps, and postoperative benefits of RDN therapy. As a minimally invasive interventional procedure, RDN leaves no implants in the body after surgery, with minimal trauma and quick recovery, enabling long-term safe and effective blood pressure reduction in a single operation. This provides a new treatment option for patients with poor blood pressure control, such as those at high risk of cardiovascular events or with poor medication adherence. "Such therapy experiences can also help young surgeons become familiar with the procedure and quickly apply it in clinical practice," said Professor Huo Yong at the therapy experience site.

The emergence of RDN therapy has brought a breakthrough in the treatment of hypertension. How to more solidly implement this therapy in China and ensure its healthier development has become another important topic. Against this backdrop, Medtronic has partnered with the Cardiovascular Health Alliance to launch the Standardization Project for Hypertension Intervention and Diagnosis, which will focus on the standardized implementation of RDN therapy in China.

Professor Yong Huo said, "In the future, the Cardiovascular Health Alliance will collaborate with Medtronic on the following focused initiatives to standardize the implementation of RDN therapy: First, establish a high-level academic exchange platform for interventional hypertension diagnosis and treatment; Second, promote physician training for the standardized clinical application of RDN; Third, enhance public and patient awareness of innovative hypertension therapies."

"RDN therapy brings good news to a large number of hypertensive patients in China. We hope to continue innovating in the future, including conceptual innovation, professional innovation, and technological innovation, and transform these innovative achievements into clinical applications so that more patients can benefit," said Professor Sun Ningling. "With everyone's joint efforts, we will further help standardize the implementation of RDN technology, investigate the awareness of doctors and patients, and promote the maturity of RDN technology."

Mr. Tao Jia, Vice President of Medtronic's Coronary and Renal Denervation Business in China, introduced: "This renewed cooperation with the Cardiovascular Health Alliance in the field of hypertension will undoubtedly better contribute to strengthening the standardized diagnosis and treatment of hypertension, promoting the construction of Hypertension Accreditation Centers, and striving for the realization of Healthy China 2030!"

Mr. Gu Yushao, Senior Vice President of Medtronic Global and President of Greater China, stated, "We hope to see more enterprises both in and outside of China pay attention to innovative therapies and participate in the early clinical validation stage, jointly promoting the faster implementation of innovative therapies." (Zhu Wen)