Johnson & Johnson reports lower mortality rates with Impella heart pumps

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) on Sunday reported results from three clinical analyses showing lower mortality rates among patients receiving Impella heart pump support during high-risk coronary procedures compared with rates reported in the recent CHIP-BCIS3 clinical trial.

The analyses, presented at the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics conference, examined 1,379 patients across U.S. and European hospitals. Impella devices temporarily assist the heart in pumping blood during complex procedures to open blocked coronary arteries, particularly in patients with weakened heart function.

For investors, the findings could help Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) defend Impella's clinical value following less favorable CHIP-BCIS3 results. However, the new analyses rely on observational data rather than randomized comparisons, limiting conclusions about whether Impella itself improves survival. The ongoing randomized PROTECT IV trial, expected to report results in 2027, could provide stronger evidence.

In the 279-patient European TRI-GUARD-PCI registry, mortality from any cause was 6.1% at 30 days and 7.9% at 180 days, below rates reported in CHIP-BCIS3.A separate U.S. analysis involving 522 patients found cardiovascular mortality of 3.4% at hospital discharge, compared with approximately 8% at day four in the CHIP-BCIS3 Impella group. Estimated mortality reached 4.7% at 30 days and 6.5% at 90 days.

A third analysis of 578 PROTECT III patients reported in-hospital mortality of 4.7%, also below the approximately 8% figure cited from CHIP-BCIS3.Johnson & Johnson said differences in patient selection, treatment duration and post-procedure care may influence outcomes. The comparisons don't establish that those factors caused the lower mortality rates.