Thoratec Terminates Pending Sale of ITC Division to Danaher

Thoratec Corporation THOR announced today the termination, by mutual agreement, of the previously announced agreement to sell its International Technidyne Corporation (ITC) division to Danaher Corporation DHR. The termination came about as the result of the failure of the parties to agree about the status of certain aspects of ITC's quality system and regulatory filings. In addition, during the period since the agreement was signed, the ProTime InRhythm launch in the U.S. has been delayed because the FDA did not clear the product's initial 510(k) submission. As a result, the parties were unable to reach agreement as to whether closing conditions had been met and thus determined to terminate the transaction agreement. Consistent with prior disclosure, Thoratec plans to account for the ITC division as "held for sale," and its results will be displayed in discontinued operations in the company's financial statements beginning in the second quarter of 2010. Thoratec's board of directors currently expects that a sale of ITC will occur in the next twelve months.