Sorin Group Enters into an Exclusive Agreement with Datascope to Distribute Sorin's Peripheral Stent Line

12/12/2006 - 13:10

Sorin Group (MIL:SRN) (Reuters code: SORN.MI) announced today that
it has closed an exclusive five-year worldwide agreement, excluding
the United States and Japan, with Datascope Corp. (NASDAQ:DSCP), that
will distribute Sorin's peripheral vascular stent products. The deal
includes a call option to acquire Sorin's peripheral stent business
within two years.

Sorin's innovative peripheral stent products are dedicated to the
treatment of peripheral arterial disease ("PAD") and use the
Carbofilm(TM) Technology, whose excellent biocompatible and
hemocompatible characteristics are well clinically proven. The product
line includes balloon-expandable and self-expanding stent systems
principally for use in the treatment of the iliac arteries, renal
arteries and infrapopliteal lesions, as well as balloon systems for
use in PTA (Percutaneous Transluminal Angioplasty).

Sorin's peripheral stent line will be distributed by Datascope's
InterVascular Division ("Intervascular"), a worldwide leader in
manufacturing and distributing vascular grafts to cardiac and vascular
surgeons. Datascope believes that the peripheral stent products are an
attractive addition to Intervascular's product portfolio and will
benefit from Intervascular's marketing, sales, clinical education /
training, and new product development capabilities.

"We are very confident that this agreement represents a unique
opportunity to strengthen and reinforce Sorin's technological
leadership and awareness in the interventional cardiology market,
benefiting from Datascope's sales and distribution network", said
Franco Vallana, President Cardiac Surgery Business Unit and Chief
Scientific Officer of Sorin Group.

"We believe that Sorin's peripheral vascular stents will be an
attractive addition to InterVascular's portfolio," said InterVascular
President Nino Laudani. "We look forward to leveraging our
capabilities in marketing, sales, clinical education and training, as
well as product development to accelerate the adoption of these Sorin
products. Our strength in the cardiovascular surgery call point, as
well as our commitment to technology innovation, should enable us to
increase peripheral stent sales and expand the overall adoption rate
of stents by vascular surgeons and interventionalists."

The worldwide market for peripheral vascular stents and PTA
balloons, excluding the United States and Japan, is estimated at $192
million annually, and growing due to an increase in diagnostic
procedures, the demographics of the aging population and the higher
incidence of diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and
hypercholesterolemia - all leading causes of PAD.

About the Sorin Group

The Sorin Group (Reuters code: SORN.MI), a world leader in the
development of medical technologies for cardiac surgery, offers
innovative therapies for cardiac rhythm dysfunctions, interventional
cardiology and the treatment of chronic kidney diseases. Sorin Group
includes: Dideco, CarboMedics, Inc., COBE Cardiovascular, Inc.,
Stockert, Mitroflow, ELA Medical, Inc., Sorin Biomedica, Bellco and
Soludia. Sorin Group has more than 4,500 employees working at
facilities in more than 80 countries throughout the world to serve
over 5,000 public and private treatment centers.

About InterVascular and Datascope Corp.

InterVascular, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Datascope Corp., is a
leading worldwide supplier of a full range of polyester,
collagen-coated knitted and woven vascular grafts and patches.

Datascope Corp. is a diversified medical device company that
designs, manufactures and markets proprietary products for clinical
health care markets in interventional cardiology and radiology,
cardiovascular and vascular surgery, anesthesiology, emergency
medicine and critical care. The Company has four product lines
aggregated into two reporting segments, Cardiac Assist / Monitoring
Products and Interventional Products / Vascular Grafts. The Company's
products are sold throughout the world through direct sales
representatives and independent distributors. Founded in 1964,
Datascope is headquartered in Montvale, New Jersey. For news releases,
webcasts and other Company information please visit Datascope's
website, www.datascope.com.

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