Utah’s Fastest Growing Medical Device Company, MedQuest® Products Inc, Names Zaf Zafirelis President and CEO

November 11, 2002 ,SALT LAKE CITY —In preparation for taking the next step in the development of MedQuest as a leader in the emerging implantable blood pump industry, the MedQuest Board of Directors have named Mr. Zafiris G. Zafirelis as President and Chief Executive Officer. This move comes at a time when MedQuest is completing the final clinical design of its revolutionary HeartQuest™ System and is beginning the final phases of development and testing in preparation for commercialization of the company’s flagship product.

Mr. Zafirelis brings 15 years of successful CEO experience to his new position; he has successfully raised investment capital to fund final product development and commercialization in two previous medical device start-up ventures where he was President, CEO, and a co-founder. Mr. Zafirelis’ most recent position was as President and CEO of CardiacAssist Inc., Pittsburgh ,PA , a leader in the short-term treatment of heart failure patients.

“I have complete confidence in the outstanding team in place at MedQuest, said Mr. Zafirelis, incoming President and CEO. “I believe in the HeartQuest™ System, our MagLev™ Technology, and the strength of our Intellectual Property. Based on these strengths, I look forward to continuing the proud history of achievement that has made MedQuest a leader in the development of long-term implantable blood pump technology.”

Adding to that history of achievement, MedQuest® Products Inc. was once again selected as the fastest growing medical device company in Utah and ranked 29 th overall, from over 10,000 applicants, by the MountainWest Venture Group. This is the third year in a row that MedQuest has been selected to this elite group of 100 in Utah .

Mr. Pratap Khanwilkar, co-founder and Chief Technology Officer, accepted the award from the Governor of Utah, Mr. Michael Leavitt, on behalf of the entire MedQuest team. Mr. Khanwilkar commented that, “This award recognizes the continued fast growth of MedQuest and is a tribute to the great performance of the MedQuest team over the past seven years. It comes at a time when MedQuest is positioning itself for even greater success in the future.” Recently MedQuest has experienced very positive animal results with their HeartQuest™ VAD product and is in the process of securing the company’s first round of institutional investment funding.

These recent accomplishments coupled with an announcement by the U.S. FDA that they have “approved a heart assist pump to be implanted permanently in certain terminally ill patients who are not eligible for heart transplant”, demonstrates that the technology and the regulatory environment are converging at the right time to enable MedQuest to successfully bring the best long-term therapy to congestive heart failure patients.

Company Background
MedQuest is a pioneer in the development of implantable ventricular assist devices (VADs). The HeartQuest™ VAD is an implantable, centrifugal pump that utilizes a magnetically suspended impeller to provide a frictionless, wear-free pumping action. A VAD boosts the output of a failing heart to normal levels. Congestive heart failure is the fastest growing segment of the cardiovascular disease market and is diagnosed in 550,000 Americans each year; over 200,000 deaths annually are attributed to congestive heart failure according to American Heart Association 2002 statistics .

MedQuest®, HeartQuest™, and MagLev™ are trademarks of MedQuest® Products Inc.