Bangalore based S3V Vascular Technologies announced the launch of India's first Bioabsorbable Endovascular Drug Coated Stent “Avatar”. Initially the drug coated stent is at testing stage for animals. The company has already earmarked Rs.140 crore for setting up a state-of-art integrated manufacturing facility in Bangalore.

Disclosing the launch in Hyderabad, N G Badari Narayan, managing director, S3V Vascular technologies said, “It is our first step towards achieving this mission. Initially we launched India’s first Bioabsorbable Endovascular Drug Coated Stent “Avatar” for animal trials. Metal stents are widely used and have been the standard of care for coronary heart disease; however, they have their limitations. Stents made of polymeric bioabsorbable materials (such as our “Avatar”) can achieve the same results in a highly patient friendly manner and at an affordable cost.”

Explaining how it works, Badari added that the “Avatar” not only restores blood flow by opening a blocked vessel, but most importantly it releases a pro-healing drug during its entire life span (about 18 months) and dissolves away after fulfilling its life-saving vessel support role. Once the stent is dissolved, the vessel can then resume its natural function of vasomotion (constriction and dilation). Unlike metal stents, there is no danger of late stent thrombosis (clotting) and generally no need for long term anti-platelet therapy. Patients with “Avatar” will be able to undergo CT and MRI scans and will also be able to undergo further surgical interventions if necessary.

Once installed, this unique product releases anti-proliferative drugs for the first 90 days and pro-healing drugs during its dissolving phase. During the dissolving phase, the vessel wall continues to heal and remodel due to vasomotion. This leads to natural healing and normal vasomotion once the stent is dissolved, he informed.

Already the company had earmarked Rs.140 crore for setting up a state of art facility at Bangalore which is expected to come up with in next 15 months. Out of the total outlay of Rs.140 crore, promoters brought in the Rs.20 crore. Another Rs.30 crore are to be raised from strategic investors and rest through loan from banks. The pilot plant will be ready by April 2012 and will be capable of manufacturing the current generation bare stents and drug eluting stents. The integrated facility will be ready in next 18 months and will have facilities to produce the bioabsorbable scaffholds. The location for the integrated plant will be decided in a few weeks from now, said N G Badari Narayan.

Ajit Rangnekar, Dean of Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad said, “It is a matter of pride for us at ISB that the very first batch has produced a business plan to build a highly-efficient world-class plant which will enable the manufacturing of hi-tech globally competitive medical devices at affordable costs.”

Speaking on business plans, Dr Chava Satyanarayan, director, S3V technologies, added that the company aims to develop next-gen products in intervention cardiology, neurology, peripheral and endovascular treatments. The future expected product line of the company includes catheters, disposables and other devices used in various angiographic procedures in radiology and cardiology.