Edwards Lifesciences’ Sapien 3 Ultra TAVR. The company is a dominant player in the U.S. TAVR market. [Image courtesy of Edwards Lifesciences]
6. Disruptors are at a disadvantage
Innovation and disruption are the tenets of the medical device industry. However, the limits forced upon hospitals and physicians from COVID-19 are bending those rules. Medical device companies with proven, entrenched devices will have an easier time staving off challengers until normalcy returns
Here’s what Edwards CEO Mike Mussallem had to say:
“Yeah, there may have been some advantage that we’re the incumbent. But maybe the bigger issue is that we’ve got some really trustworthy and proven results. … People can count on the Sapien platform in terms of how it’s going to perform. They don’t have to worry so much about a pacemaker that’s going to mean the patient has to stay in the hospital longer, very little chance of ICU. So they just have more confidence in the system. And frankly, there’s just not many opportunities if you have something brand new to be able to train [health] centers. And so there is some advantage, but I almost think the bigger advantage is from having a reliable system.”
