ERS 2018: Ongoing positive results for emphysema treatment

Dr. Gerard Criner, MD, FACP, FACCP, Chair and Professor of Thoracic Medicine and Surgery at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, announced the 12-month results of the EMPROVE multicenter, randomized and controlled study for the Spiration® Valve System (SVS), a minimally invasive treatment for severe emphysema, at the European Respiratory Society International Congress (ERS) in Paris, France. The EMPROVE trial enrolled 172 patients across 31 centers in the U.S. and Canada and evaluated the safety and effectiveness of the Spiration® Valve System compared to optimal medical care in patients with severe emphysema in a 2-to-1 randomization. Patients eligible for the EMPROVE trial were those with severe airflow obstruction, dyspnea (shortness of breath) and hyperinflation, which occurs when air becomes trapped in the lungs and makes breathing difficult. Dr. Criner, the EMPROVE study's lead enroller, presented initial positive results based on a six-month primary endpoint earlier in the year at the American Thoracic Society Annual Conference in San Diego. The subsequent presentation at ERS, one of the largest respiratory meetings of the year, reported on the longer-term 12-month…