Shanghai, China, 30 October 2021 — MicroPort^® CardioFlow Medtech Corporation (MicroPort^® CardioFlow) recently hosted a launch event for the VitaFlow Liberty™ Transcatheter Aortic Valve and Retrievable Delivery System (VitaFlow Liberty™), a next-generation product for transcatheter aortic valve implantation (“TAVI”). The product, presented at China Structural Week 2021 and the 5th China International Structural Heart Disease Conference held in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Xi'an, drew the attention of experts in the field of structural heart disease and triggered discussions on the development of the TAVI procedure.

Over the past two years since its launch,MicroPort^® CardioFlow's TAVI product VitaFlow^® has become available in over 260 hospitals in China. Approved for marketing in August, 2021, the new-generation VitaFlow Liberty™ is the only motorized retrievable TAVI system commercially available in the world. Its innovative motorized handle allows for fast, stable and accurate release and retrieval, providing surgeons with better control over the procedure. In addition, it is also the only delivery system commercially available in the Chinese market that features a 360-degree bendable distal end, with superior flexibility that can effectively help minimize blood vessel damage.

Prof. Yongjian Wu, from the Fuwai Hospital of Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, commented, “For most surgeons, the change brought by the VitaFlow Liberty™ Retrievable System is not limited to intraoperative operation, but it also improves the mindset of the operator. Not only does it liberate the surgeon and stabilize blood pressure, it also enables better surgical results for patients.”

VitaFlow Liberty™ also inherits the hybrid density stent design of VitaFlow^®, the first-generation TAVI product by MicroPort^® CardioFlow, and continues to use bovine pericardium as its leaflet material for better durability. Its sensible double-layer skirts design helps effectively prevent perivalvular leakage to a larger extent.

It is estimated that 25 million people are suffering from valvular heart disease in China at present. As China's aging population continues to grow, an increasing number of patients will require TAVI treatment in the future.

Mr. Guoming Chen, President of MicroPort^® CardioFlow, said, “MicroPort^® CardioFlow has witnessed the development of TAVI China for ten years. It is predicted that the total number of TAVI performed in China will reach 8,000 for the first time this year. The launch of the new-generation VitaFlow Liberty™ heralds a new era of motorized retrievable TAVI systems in China. In addition, MicroPort^® CardioFlow is also actively exploring the field of mitral and tricuspid valves diseases, and it will use its strength in innovation to ensure the core competitiveness of its future products and provide a total solution for valve diseases in general, with the aim of providing more convenience for the surgeons while ensuring a better prognosis for the patient.”