International Circuit
Abbott Vascular executive assumes CMO role at Abiomed
He received his medical degree from Harvard Medical School and did his internship, residency and chief residency in the Department of Internal Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, and his cardiology fellowship at Duke University.
Dr. Simonton’s appointment comes as Abiomed accelerates its clinical research, including multiple U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) randomized control trials (RCTs) such as the STEMI-DTU RCT, the PROTECT IV RCT, and the RECOVER IV RCT. Dr. Simonton will also play an integral role as Abiomed launches new, innovative products and incorporates artificial intelligence.
“I am excited to be a part of Abiomed’s dedicated team focused on developing innovative medical devices. Over the years, I have become very familiar with the benefits of Impella and its ability to unload the heart and have seen how it is transforming the standard of care. I am impressed with Abiomed’s talent, culture, and mission and I am thrilled to be joining the company,” said Dr. Simonton.
Dr. Seth Bilazarian, who has been vice president and chief medical officer of Abiomed since 2015, will assume medical leadership of Abiomed’s physician education and training programs as vice president, medical education and training, as Abiomed grows its online education offering with CAMP PCI and creates virtual proctoring programs. Dr. Bilazarian has been instrumental in guiding and executing medical professional education and training at Abiomed. His new role, which will report to Dr. Simonton, will expand upon those responsibilities and further differentiate Abiomed as an industry leader.
“The addition of Dr. Chuck Simonton makes our medical office even stronger,” said Michael R. Minogue, Abiomed’s chairman, president, and CEO. “Chuck’s impressive record of accomplishments and expertise will complement Seth’s leadership in advancing our education and training programs and help Abiomed rise to the next level for our patients and physicians.”
The Impella 2.5 and Impella CP devices are FDA PMA approved to treat certain advanced heart failure patients undergoing elective and urgent percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI), such as stenting or balloon angioplasty, to reopen blocked coronary arteries. The Impella 2.5, Impella CP, Impella CP with SmartAssist, Impella 5.0, Impella LD, and Impella 5.5 with Smart Assist are FDA-approved heart pumps used to treat heart attack or cardiomyopathy patients in cardiogenic shock, and have the unique ability to enable native heart recovery, allowing patients to return home with their own heart. The Impella RP is FDA approved to treat right heart failure or decompensation following left ventricular assist device implantation, myocardial infarction, heart transplant, or open-heart surgery. The Impella RP is also authorized for emergency use by healthcare providers (HCP) in the hospital setting for providing temporary right ventricular support for up to 14 days in critical care patients with a body surface area ≥1.5 m2, for the treatment of acute right heart failure or decompensation caused by complications related to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), including pulmonary embolism (PE).