Thoratec Investor Meeting to Review HeartMate II (R) Destination Therapy Trial Data to Be Webcast

Thoratec Investor Meeting to Review HeartMate II (R) Destination Therapy Trial
Data to Be Webcast

PLEASANTON, Calif., Nov. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Thoratec Corporation
(Nasdaq: THOR), a world leader in device-based mechanical circulatory support
therapies to save, support and restore failing hearts, said today that it will
webcast its investor event to discuss data from the HeartMate II Destination
Therapy clinical trial that will be presented during the late-breaking
clinical trial session at the American Heart Association(AHA) Scientific
Sessions 2009.

The event will begin at 1:30 p.m., Eastern Standard Time (10:30 a.m., Pacific
Standard Time), on Tuesday, November 17. The event will be available through
the company's website at www.thoratec.com. It will also be archived on the
company's website.

The event will include a review of the trial data by Dr. Joseph Rogers of Duke
University, who is presenting the data at AHA as a late-breaking clinical
trial, and comments from Gary F. Burbach, president and chief executive
officer of Thoratec.

Thoratec is a world leader in therapies to address advanced-stage heart
failure. The company's product lines include the Thoratec® VAD (Ventricular
Assist Device) and HeartMate® LVAS (Left Ventricular Assist System), with more
than 14,000 devices implanted in patients suffering from heart failure.
Additionally, its International Technidyne Corporation (ITC) Division is a
leader in point-of-care blood testing and skin incision products. Thoratec is
headquartered in Pleasanton, California. For more information, visit the
company's websites at http://www.thoratec.com or http://www.itcmed.com.

SOURCE Thoratec Corporation

David Smith, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer of Thoratec
Corporation, +1-925-847-8600; or Neal B. Rosen of Ruder-Finn, +1-415-692-3058,
for Thoratec Corporation