ARTICLE SUMMARY:
After years of struggle and a long list of technology and company failures, minimally invasive devices designed to treat chronic gastroesophageal reflux disease may finally be seeing some light at the end of the tunnel. New Category I CPT codes, as well as widespread reports linking chronic use of acid-reducing drugs to a number of severe maladies, are creating some tailwinds for device players in this field.
The market for minimally invasive device-based solutions aimed at gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) has struggled to make headway over the past decade and a half, due to a combination of factors, including subpar safety, efficacy, and durability outcomes with many of the first-generation technologies, which limited acceptance among both physicians and payors, and widespread adoption of drug treatments, particularly acid-reducing proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), as a first-line therapy for GERD.
