Medtronic's DBS System With BrainSense Technology Gets FDA Nod

Medtronic plc MDT recently announced receipt of the FDA’s approval for its Percept PC Deep Brain Stimulation (“DBS”) system. The inclusion of the BrainSense technology with the Percept PC DBS system makes it the first and only DBS neurostimulation system that has the ability to chronically capture and record brain signals while providing therapy to patients. Such patients include those with neurologic disorders associated with Parkinson’s Disease (“PD”), among others.

Notably, the Percept PC DBS system also received the CE Mark approval in January 2020.

For investors’ note, the DBS is a customized treatment provided via a small pacemaker-like device designed to send electrical signals to targeted areas in the brain. Such targeted areas are related to the symptoms of neurological disorders like PD.

With the regulatory clearance, Medtronic’s Brain Therapies business, a component of the broader Restorative Therapies Group, is expected to strengthen its foothold worldwide.

Significance of the Approval

The Percept PC DBS system with BrainSense technology enables clinicians to track patients’ brain signals and correlate those with patient-recorded actions or experiences like symptoms, side-effects or medication intake. This aids in providing a more tailored and data-driven neurostimulation treatment.

Per the medical fraternity at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN (which is the first entity in the United States to use the newly approved device), the DBS can remarkably improve motor function in PD patients, unlike standard medication alone. Thus, this will enable to provide individual patient-centric therapy options solely based on neuronal activity data.

Per management, with such data-driven and patient-specific insights, the standard of patient care can be significantly improved.

Industry Prospects

Per a report by Grand View Research, the global DBS devices market size was valued at $1 billion in 2019 and is projected to expand at a CAGR of 9.6% between 2020 and 2027. Factors like a growing patient pool suffering from involuntary movements associated with diseases like PD and rising adoption of minimally invasive procedures are expected to drive the market.

Given the market potential, the FDA clearance for Medtronic’s DBS system seems to be well-timed.

Other Developments in Brain Therapies Business

Medtronic has seen quite a few developments in its Brain Therapies business.

In January, the company had announced three-month results from a large multicenter randomized controlled trial, which showed statistically significant and superior back pain relief with Differential Target Multiplexed Spinal Cord Stimulation (“SCS”) unlike conventional SCS.

In the same month, Medtronic received the CE Mark for its InterStim Micro neurostimulator and InterStim SureScan MRI leads, thus enabling commercial sale and clinical use of the technologies in Europe.

Price Performance

Shares of the company have lost 8.8% in the past year compared with the industry’s 8.6% fall and the S&P 500’s 5.6% rise.

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

Currently, Medtronic carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks from the broader medical space are Quest Diagnostics Incorporated DGX, Hologic, Inc. HOLX and QIAGEN N.V. QGEN.

Quest Diagnostics’ long-term earnings growth rate is projected at 7.6%. It currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Hologic’s long-term earnings growth rate is estimated at 7%. The company presently has a Zacks Rank #2.

QIAGEN’s long-term earnings growth rate is estimated at 12.2%. It currently sports a Zacks Rank #1.

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