ABIOMED Investor Conference Call Provides Clinical Trial Update.

Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers

DANVERS, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 16, 2002

ABIOMED, Inc., (NASDAQ: ABMD) in a conference call with investors yesterday, provided an update on the status of its ongoing clinical trial of the AbioCor(TM) Implantable Replacement Heart, the world's first replacement heart designed to allow patients to leave the hospital and lead a reasonably good quality of life. A complete replay of yesterday's conference call can be heard via ABIOMED's website at www.abiomed.com.

The Company highlighted the following points:

-- The trial is ongoing and in good regulatory standing;

-- There are no known technical impediments to implantation;

-- The AbioCor has performed exceptionally -- the AbioCor has fully supported patients for an aggregate of 2.8 years without any mechanical malfunction;

-- Positives clearly outweigh negatives with regard to the overall clinical trial experience;

-- The overall complication rate to date is very encouraging and ABIOMED believes that what has been learned from the early patients in this trial will improve performance moving forward. Significantly, there have been no mechanical malfunctions and no device-related infections, and the rate of severe strokes is comparable on average to devices currently in clinical use;

-- Increasing efforts are being made to enroll additional patients into the clinical trial. For ethical reasons, the Company's approach has been, and remains, to gain experience with the sickest of patients, while increasingly targeting patients with fewer non-cardiac complications;

-- We are excited, extremely eager to proceed and remain very optimistic about the success of the clinical trial.

ABIOMED has also indicated that the Company will be presenting at the Salomon Smith Barney Healthcare Conference on October 28, 2002.

Based in Danvers, Massachusetts, ABIOMED, Inc. (pronounced "AB'-EE-O-MED") is a leading developer, manufacturer and marketer of medical products designed to assist or replace the pumping function of the failing heart. The Company's AbioCor Implantable Replacement Heart is being implanted in patients as part of an initial clinical trial conducted under an Investigational Device Exemption from the United States Food and Drug Administration. The AbioCor has not been approved for commercial distribution, and is not available for use or sale outside of the initial clinical trial. ABIOMED currently manufactures and sells the BVS, the most widely used heart assist device for the temporary support of patients with failing but potentially recoverable hearts.

This Release contains references to clinical trials for the AbioCor. Clinical trials are subject to significant risks. ABIOMED's actual results may differ materially from those anticipated for the clinical trials based upon a number of factors, including uncertainties associated with development, testing and related regulatory approvals, anticipated future losses, complex manufacturing, high quality requirements, dependence on limited sources of supply, competition, technological change, government regulation, future capital needs and uncertainty of additional financing and other risks detailed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Investors are encouraged to consider these risks and cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements regarding these clinical trials.