angioplasties

Abbott Pharma

National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority

NPPA

Mumbai

blood vessel

Dr Mathew Samuel Kalarickal

cardiologists

Lilavati Hospital

Dubai

Singapore

Jaslok hospital

Dr L H Hiranandani Hospital

Surana Group of Hospitals

Mumbai Mirror

Salil Shirodkar

Nanavati Hospital

Sole supplier Abbott withdrew bioresorbable stents from all hospitals on Thursday leaving doctors in the city stranded.Scores ofin the city were put on hold on Thursday afterwithdrew bioresorbable stents from all hospitals, claiming it could not afford to sell the stents at prices recently mandated by the).Earlier this week, the NPPA reduced prices of stents by over 75%, capping the prices of drug eluting stents and bioresorbable stents at Rs 29,600 a piece. Before the cap on prices, Abbott used to sell bioresorbable stents at around Rs 1.9 lakh a piece.The move has sparked panic in the city’s medical circles as Abbott is the only manufacturer supplying bioresorbable stents in India. Over 8000 bioresorbable stents are used in India annually, over a thousand of them inalone.A stent is inserted into ato expand it to alleviate a blockage.While traditionally such devices are fabricated from metal mesh and remain in the body permanently or until removed through surgical intervention, a bioresorbable stent serves the same purpose, but is manufactured from a material that eventually dissolves or is absorbed in the body., one of the city’s topand a consultant atsaid the cap on stent prices was a poorly thought out decision. “The company has already taken back dissolvable stents from various hospitals. I have no option left but to take my patients toor,” said Dr Mathew, who used 10 to 15 dissolvable stents in angioplasties every month.Dr Ashwin Mehta, senior cardiologist at, said that along with dissolvable stents, the newer versions of drug eluting stents have also been withdrawn by the company.Dr A V Ganesh Kumar, head, Department of Cardiology at, said the company took away nearly a hundred bioresorbable stents from the hospital’s stock on Thursday. “In the past three years, I have handled 240 cases with bioresorbable stents. Now I have to stop,” he said. He added that nearly 70 per cent of the cases he handles in a year involve patients below the age of 40. “In young patients, we always suggest bioresorbable stents to avoid putting patients on blood thinners for life,” he said.Prince Surana, medical director,, said that while he has no issues with the NPPA’s decision to put a cap on stent prices, the problem is that the doctors have no alternative now because Abbott is the only supplier of bioresorbable stents in India.An Abbott official, who did not want to be identified, refused to confirm that the withdrawal of the stents was linked to the cap of prices. “Yes, we have withdrawn stents from hospitals, but maybe it is to relabel them.”Anand Kadkol, director, public affairs, Abbott India, said, “Abbott continues to make available its full range of coronary stents available in India, including BVS, as per the NPPA’s order of Feb 13, 2017. In certain cases, we have initiated the process of relabeling to comply with the revised pricing notified by the government.Doctorsspoke to, however, said they were give no reassurance about the stents coming back to them in the near future.Dr, cardiologist at, said while taking away the stents, the company representative said nothing about relabeling. He just said that it was impossible for the company to sell the stents at prices decided by NPPA.