ARTICLE SUMMARY:
The intravascular lithotripsy space is set to become much more competitive in the next two years. Last year, J&J paid $13 billion for IVL pioneer Shockwave and Boston Scientific recently acquired Bolt Medical, a laser IVL company it helped found. Meanwhile, upstart companies like AVS and FastWave believe they have differentiated IVL solutions to compete with the big strategics in this billion-dollar market.
Intravascular lithotripsy (IVL) breaks hard calcium in the vessel wall so a balloon or stent can expand the vessel and restore blood flow. Shockwave Medical pioneered the technology for creating a shock wave with an angioplasty balloon about a decade ago; it earned FDA clearance for an IVL system for the peripheral vasculature in 2016 and the agency approved its first coronary IVL system in 2021.
