Alajuela, Costa Rica. Pacemakers, heart valves, catheters, guidewires, compression systems and equipment for vascular procedures are designed and manufactured today at Coyol Free Zone, where nine companies located in the industrial park develop technologies for the care of patients around the world.
The solutions manufactured in this business cluster are linked to the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of cardiovascular conditions, a group of disorders that affect the heart and blood vessels and that, according to the World Heart Federation, impact the lives of approximately 640 million people worldwide.
In Costa Rica, cardiovascular disease is one of the leading causes of death and presents a challenge that calls for stronger prevention, timely care and innovation. According to data from the Costa Rican Social Security Fund (CCSS), 37.2% of the country’s adult population has high blood pressure, one of the main risk factors for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease. In addition, 36,720 new cases of hypertension were reported in 2025, an average of 100 diagnoses per day, according to the Ministry of Health.
The scale of this reality is reflected in mortality figures. In 2024, 2,269 people died from acute myocardial infarction, according to vital statistics from the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INEC). That same year, 943 deaths were also recorded from chronic ischemic heart disease and 940 from essential (primary) hypertension, highlighting the impact of cardiovascular conditions on the population.
In this context, healthcare innovation becomes a key ally in patient care. Behind each of these advances are Costa Rican hands and expertise: highly specialized talent that is part of global production chains, a network that makes it possible to bring increasingly precise and less invasive alternatives for patient care to the market.
“Behind every medical device there is specialized knowledge, high-precision processes and skilled professionals who make it possible to turn innovation into solutions that reach patients in different parts of the world. The work these companies carry out at Coyol Free Zone demonstrates the value Costa Rica brings to the global medical device industry and its capacity to take part in increasingly sophisticated manufacturing processes,” said Jorge Monge Víquez, Managing Director of CODE Development Group, co-developer of Coyol Free Zone.
As part of World Heart Day, observed every September 29 under this year’s theme “Don’t Miss a Beat,” Coyol Free Zone highlights these companies’ commitment to cardiovascular health worldwide.
Technology Transforming Heart Health
Technology is transforming the way cardiovascular procedures are performed, with solutions that enable greater precision, better visualization and increasingly less invasive approaches. Behind these innovations are high-precision processes and specialized materials, including resins with different levels of radiopacity that make instruments easier to see during image-guided procedures. Companies also develop systems to assess the condition of arteries and heart tissue, along with devices designed for simpler interventions and faster patient recovery.
From Coyol Free Zone, companies combine engineering, manufacturing, research and quality control to deliver their products to medical centers across different markets, in a process that requires ever-greater specialization and added value to supply international markets.
This level of specialization also creates new talent needs in areas such as engineering, manufacturing, quality and research and development, expanding job opportunities linked to an industry that continues to evolve toward more advanced processes and technologies.