Medtronic Merges Two Core Divisions to Form New Cardiovascular Surgery Business Unit

On May 6, Medtronic announced a major organizational restructuring, formally merging its Cardiac Surgery and Aortic businesses into a new "Cardiovascular Surgery" division. Dr. Karim Bandali, former head of the Cardiac Surgery business, has been appointed as Senior Vice President and President to oversee the operations of the new division.

Bandali stated in an official statement posted on LinkedIn that the merger integrates the deep expertise, talent resources, and shared mission of the two business units, with the core objective to "accelerate innovation, strengthen collaboration with clinical stakeholders, and create greater value across the entire cardiovascular care continuum." He also announced the strategic goals for the next five years: the new division aims to serve over 6.5 million patients within five years, guided by Medtronic's mission, achieving continuous growth in service coverage.

This integration covers the full product line of two core business lines.The original cardiac surgery business covered technologies such as surgical heart valves, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), left atrial appendage closure, and mitral and tricuspid valve repair; the aortic business included endovascular treatment devices such as stent grafts and interventional guidewires. After the merger, the new department will integrate the technical pathways of open surgery and interventional treatment, achieving an integrated layout from basic instruments to advanced treatment solutions, aligning more closely with the current industry trend of multidisciplinary collaboration in cardiovascular disease diagnosis and treatment.

At the personnel level, Simona Zannetti, the former head of the aortic business, left Medtronic in early 2026 and is now serving as the Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President of Clinical Research at Artivion. This time, Bandali took over the new department through internal integration, continuing Medtronic's strategic direction in recent years of improving operational efficiency by streamlining its structure.

This is not the first time Medtronic has integrated and adjusted its business units.Since the strategic restructuring in 2020, which split the company into 20 independently operated units, Medtronic has repeatedly optimized resource allocation by merging similar businesses: In 2023, it combined its surgical robotics and surgical innovation divisions, and in 2024, integrated its patient monitoring and respiratory intervention businesses… These adjustments all aim to reduce business fragmentation and focus on high-growth sectors.