AtriCure, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRC) Q1 2024 Earnings Call Transcript

Mike Carrel: I think the key to reimbursement on pain management is clinical data. Clinical evidence showing a combination of cost savings in some way, whether it’s length of stay or fewer calls or return visits back to the ER and hospital that happened a lot in some of these cases, because of the pain that somebody experiences two weeks, three weeks, four weeks out. That is quite frankly really helped out by the use of our Cryo Nerve Block. In addition to that, if there are studies that are being done that kind of demonstrate the true reduction in opioid use afterwards, we have seen some studies, but I think you have got to have enough studies that are out there. We have funded a lot of these studies. It’s going to take some time, but we saw that in cardiac surgery, it took us about 8 years and I know that sounds like a really long time.

But through papers that were written over time that we are studying to show the benefits of treating, they said at the time of cardiac surgery. You are now starting to see CMS over the last 2 years, increased reimbursement quite dramatically for that. And I believe the same thing will happen eventually for pain management, we just need a lot more studies to be done and we are helping to fund a lot of those.

Daniel Stauder: Great. Thank you very much.

Operator: Thank you. [Operator Instructions] Our next question comes from Mike Matson with Needham & Company. Your line is open.

Mike Matson: Yes. Thanks. So, Mike, when you were at our conference a few weeks ago, you mentioned that you were working on launching or developing, I guess clamps that would use PFA for open ablation. I just wanted to see if you could give us an update on that kind of any timing? And what would be required? Is it a new clamp or is it just a new generator?

Mike Carrel: Yes. As we did mention briefly, we have been working on work in that particular area. It’s got a combination of generator and clamp and quite frankly other technologies as well to be distributed across our product line. No update on timing. I mean we believe that we need to have all of the energy sources available for our customers. And so we think PFA is an exciting new technology that we are going to make sure that we have incorporated into the procedures that we have basically been a part of for many, many years. Now, it’s too early to give any kind of specific updates on what that looks like a product like that’s going to have to go through some clinical work and regulatory work, etcetera. So, that there is definitely work to be done on that front. But from a product standpoint, we have made a lot of progress.

Mike Matson: Okay. Thanks. And then just on the LeAAPS trial, so obviously doing really well and rolling pretty fast. Do you – when and if it’s successful, do you think that it would create kind of a class effect and benefit. Any of the products clips that are out there or do you think it would really be just specific to you AtriClip? I mean I know you would be the one with the indication. But for stroke or I guess prophylactic use, but, do you think that would kind of help out your competitor to any degree as well?

Mike Carrel: Well, I mean to your point and let’s start, I mean we are investing in this trial, because we believe it’s the right thing to do for patient care for the long-term. And number one, it’s going to be our product exclusively used. So, it’s going to be a 6,500-patient trial. The product is going to be used to get the stroke label is going to be the AtriClip. That’s what we will have the stroke label, our competitor products would not have that. Is that a differentiator, absolutely. There is no question about it that once we are able to get that kind of level, it should be a differentiator. However, if somebody else has a product on the market and somebody feels like they want to use that product and believe that that product has some benefits to it, I am sure there will be some level of a class effect on that point.

At that point, we are talking about 1.5 million patients around the globe that will be using some sort of clip just in cardiac surgery, not including what’s going to be used in any other area. So, to me, obviously you are going to have competition. I mentioned it earlier, when you build big multibillion dollar markets, you are going to have competition and competition is going to hit some level of share during that period of time. We saw it in TAVR. We saw it in the occlusion market. And in both of those cases they have created multibillion dollar markets. And the competition has been there as well and then it becomes who has got the best clinical evidence, who has got the best product in the market.

Mike Matson: Okay. Thank you.

Operator: Thank you. [Operator Instructions] And our next question comes from Suraj Kalia with Oppenheimer. Your line is open.

Suraj Kalia: Mike, Angie, can you hear me, alright?

Angie Wirick: We can hear you.

Suraj Kalia: Perfect. So, Mike, couple of questions, your way one is in terms of the PFA clamp, for open I understand, but can you walk us through the, I believe in your prepared remarks, you talked about the complementary, you were seeing with your existing clamps that PFA catheters. In long standing persistent AF, PFA, I believe they have just started clinical trials, right? So, we don’t have any data yet and I am curious if you could just kind of thread the needle for us as to how it is complementary in terms of the clamp and PFA catheters.