Device may treat high blood pressure

ROCHESTER, N.Y., Oct. 16 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers say an implantable device may be a cost-effective way to treat high blood pressure and its effects.

The device, called Rheos, is being tested at the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York on drug-resistant hypertension patients.

The findings, published in the Journal of Clinical Hypertension, are based on data from two large population-based studies that compare the incidence of adverse health events -- such as stroke and heart attack -- for groups of individuals with and without the device.

The researchers also projected the healthcare costs associated with those events over a patient's lifetime and concluded if Rheos continues to perform as it has in ongoing clinical trials, the device is a cost-effective way to control hypertension.

Rheos, being developed by CVRx Inc. of Minneapolis consists of a battery-powered implantable generator, inserted under the skin near the collarbone, and two carotid sinus leads, which run from the generator to the left and right carotid sinus in the neck.