Medical Device Week articles from November 2005

Medical Device Week archives from November 2005

Venture capital panel cites ortho sector funding 'hoops'.
November 1, 2005... 2005 Medical Innovation Summit Venture capital panel cites ortho sector funding 'hoops' By HOLLAND JOHNSON Medical Device Daily Associate Managing Editor CLEVELAND -- In the orthopedics field, as in any other sector of...

Innovative technologies abound in arena occupied by surgeons.
November 1, 2005... Innovative technologies abound in arena occupied by surgeons By DIANA TUCKER Medical Device Daily Contributing Writer SAN FRANCISCO -- Although many innovative technologies were presented during the 91st clinical congress of the...

Report from Europe.
November 1, 2005... Report from Europe St. Jude gets CE mark for its Victory family of pacemakers A Medical Device Daily Staff Report St. Jude Medical (St. Paul, Minnesota) has received CE-mark approval for its Victory pacemaker family, which allows...

Financings roundup.
November 1, 2005... Financings roundup SpineMedica gathers $10.6M in Series A private placement A Medical Device Daily Staff Report SpineMedica, a Florida medical device corporation developing an artificial disc implant called SaluDisc, reported...

Washington roundup.
November 1, 2005... Washington roundup BIO files lawsuit against DC over pending price-control bill By AARON LORENZO Medical Device Daily Washington Writer WASHINGTON -- In an issue that should resonate with medical device manufacturers, the...

Deals roundup.
November 1, 2005... Deals roundup Novartis to buy rest of Chiron shares for $5.1 billion in cash A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Chiron (Emeryville, California) has entered into a definitive merger agreement with Novartis (Basel, Switzerland)...

Briefly Noted.
November 1, 2005... Briefly Noted Electric Mobility earns JCAHO accreditation Electric Mobility (Sewell, New Jersey), distributor of the "Rascal" powerchair and scooter, reported that its Rascal Insurance Services division has earned the Joint Commission...

Court report.
November 1, 2005... Court report Scrushy pleads 'not guilty' to new charges of bribery A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Richard Scrushy, founder and former CEO of HealthSouth (Birmingham, Alabama), last week pleaded not guilty to new charges...

People in Places.
November 1, 2005... People in Places * Scott Moonly, PhD, has been appointed vice president, life science investments for Brookstone Capital (Las Vegas). In his former position as a consultant with L.E.K. Consulting, Moonly address strategy issues for medical...

Product Briefs.
November 1, 2005... Product Briefs * BARRX Medical (Sunnyvale, California) said results of a study presented by Virender Sharma, MD, of the Mayo Clinic (Scottsdale, Arizona), evaluating the safety, tolerability and effectiveness of the company's HALO360...

AtriCure reports first patient treated in Bipolar system trial.
November 1, 2005... AtriCure reports first patient treated in Bipolar system trial A Medical Device Daily Staff Report AtriCure (West Chester, Ohio) reported the first pati-ent treated in its RESTORE-SR II clinical study for the use of the AtriCure Bipolar...

Deals roundup.(medical equipment industry)
November 2, 2005... Deals roundup FTC approval of J&J/Guidant deal would push pricing talks A Medical Device Daily Staff Report The Federal Trade Commission (FTC; Washington) is reportedly set to approve the acquisition of Guidant (Indianapolis) by...

VC money flowing at strong pace into life sciences firms.
November 2, 2005... VC money flowing at strong pace into life sciences firms By AARON LORENZO Medical Device Daily Washington Writer Venture capitalists are putting money into life sciences companies at a clip that could meet or exceed last year's...

Report from Europe.(National Health Service)
November 2, 2005... Report from Europe UK eyes framework for new, much faster patient pathway A Medical Device Daily Staff Report UK Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt last week gave a few added details on the program under which the National Health...

Celleration in $20M 'C' round; PerkinElmer inks new facility.
November 2, 2005... Celleration in $20M 'C' round; PerkinElmer inks new facility A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Celleration (Eden Prairie, Minnesota), developer of a non-contact ultrasound therapy for chronic and hard-to-heal wounds, reported that it...

Washington roundup.(Boston Scientific reports reimbursement code approval for device)(Pall presents to FDA committee on transmissible spongiform encephalopathies)(Physician Voluntary Reporting Program)
November 2, 2005... Washington roundup CMS in launch of Physician Voluntary Reporting Program A Medical Device Daily Staff Report WASHINGTON -- The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS; Baltimore) said last week that as part of its overall...

Grants/contracts.
November 2, 2005... Grants/contracts LabCorp, Arcturus in licensing accord on CUP classification A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Laboratory Corporation of America (LabCorp; Burlington, North Carolina), which has a focus on oncology testing, said...

Court report.
November 2, 2005... Court report BioForm settles dispute with Artes via payment, royalties A Medical Device Daily Staff Report BioForm Medical (San Diego), Artes Medical (San Mateo, California) and Dr. Martin Lemperle, one of the founders of Artes,...

Financings roundup.(Transgenomic completes stock placement)(Medicsight sells common stock)(Patient Infosystems raises cash from stock sale)
November 2, 2005... Financings roundup Transgenomic in placement; Medicsight raises $7.5 million A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Transgenomic (Omaha, Nebraska) reported that it has completed a previously disclosed private placement of the...

Nanogen POC meets ISO requirements.
November 2, 2005... Nanogen POC meets ISO requirements Nanogen (San Diego), a developer of diagnostic products, reported that the quality management system of its point-of-care division successfully meets the requirements of the International Organization for...

People in Places.(appointment and promotions at medical equipment industry)(Brief Article)
November 2, 2005... People in Places * Hossein Arjomand has been promoted to vice president, research & development at Align Technology (Santa Clara, California), replacing Rok Sribar, who has left the company to pursue other interests. Arjomand, who joined...

Product Briefs.
November 2, 2005... Product Briefs * EDAP TMS (Lyon, France) presented clinical data on the success of high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) with its Ablatherm device at the 5th International Symposium on Therapeutic Ultrasound (ISTU) held at Harvard...

Despite FTC nod, J&J may scrap its planned deal for Guidant.(Johnson & Johnson)
November 3, 2005... Despite FTC nod, J&J may scrap its planned deal for Guidant By HOLLAND JOHNSON Medical Device Daily Associate Managing Editor As expected, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC; Washington) has given conditional approval to Johnson &...

Emageon buys Camtronics for $40M; Sutura to spin off unit.(Pro-Dex acquires portion of IntraVantage)
November 3, 2005... Emageon buys Camtronics for $40M; Sutura to spin off unit A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Emageon (Birmingham, Alabama) has acquired from Analogic (Peabody, Massachusetts) all the stock of that company's wholly owned subsidiary,...

Report from Europe.
November 3, 2005... Report from Europe Eucomed pushes for reform of Japanese regulatory process A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Eucomed (Brussels, Belgium), the European medical technology trade association, issued a statement Wednesday urging the...

Briefly Noted.
November 3, 2005... Briefly Noted Medtronic awards $100M to its foundation Medtronic (Minneapolis) reported that its board approved and the company awarded last week a $100 million donation to the Medtronic Foundation. The donation will be used to...

GE Healthcare/Volcano in joint digital cath, IVUS development.(intravascular ultrasound imaging)
November 3, 2005... GE Healthcare/Volcano in joint digital cath, IVUS development By KAREN YOUNG Medical Device Daily Staff Writer In an agreement that had its beginnings with discussions late last year, GE Healthcare (Waukesha, Wisconsin) and Volcano...

Court report.
November 3, 2005... Court report CTT says U.S. Supreme Court will hear LabCorp's appeal A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Competitive Technologies (CTT; Fairfield, Connecticut) reported that the U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal by...

Financings roundup.
November 3, 2005... Financings roundup Devax in $32 million 'D' round; HemoSense in $10M share sale A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Devax (Irvine, California), an emerging medical device company developing a drug-eluting stent for the treatment...

Deals roundup.(Company Profile)
November 3, 2005... Deals roundup Access Point buys scooter, wheelchair lines from Bruno A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Access Point Medical (APM; St. Louis) reported purchasing the scooter and power wheelchair product lines of Bruno Independent...

Grants/contracts.
November 3, 2005... Grants/contracts Confirma in 3-year pact with Amerinet for CAD for MRI A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Confirma (Kirkland, Washington), which focuses on computer-aided detection (CAD) for MRI, reported a three-year agreement...

Product Briefs.
November 3, 2005... Product Briefs * Candela (Wayland, Massachusetts) has introduced a new Pulsed Dye Laser Platform featuring three new models -- the Aesthetica, the Platinum and the Perfecta. The company said customers can easily upgrade to the next version...

People in Places.(appointments at medical equipment industry)(Brief Article)
November 3, 2005... People in Places * Sebastian Meyer-Plath has been appointed vice president for the nuclear, biological and chemical (NBC) detection business of Bruker Daltonics (Billerica, Massachusetts). Meyer-Plath had originally joined Bruker in 1993,...

Perceptronix studying buccal mucosa test for lung cancer.
November 4, 2005... American College of Chest Physicians Perceptronix studying buccal mucosa test for lung cancer By KAREN YOUNG Medical Device Daily Staff Writer Perceptronix (Vancouver, British Columbia) presented results of a new study that...

CoAxia's NeuroFlo may widen 'window' for stroke treatment.
November 4, 2005... CoAxia's NeuroFlo may widen 'window' for stroke treatment By HOLLAND JOHNSON Medical Device Daily Associate Managing Editor Three hours. That's the generally acknowledged window of time in which a stroke patient can now be treated...

Report from Europe.
November 4, 2005... Report from Europe WorldHeart eyes early '06 start of rotary VAD human clinicals A Medical Device Daily Staff Report WorldHeart (Oakland, California) said it has been notified by St. Luke's Hospital's (Thessaloniki, Greece) Ethics...

Deals roundup.(mergers, acquisitions in medical equipment industry)
November 4, 2005... Deals roundup Angiotech in agreement to buy Edwards' Lifespan line for $14M A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Angiotech Pharmaceuticals (Vancouver, British Columbia) reported yesterday that it has entered into a definitive...

Court report.
November 4, 2005... Court report New York attorney general files fraud suit vs. Guidant A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Guidant (Indianapolis) this week was on the receiving end of still another lawsuit, this one filed by the State of New York,...

Financings roundup.
November 4, 2005... Financings roundup $30M funding to boost firm's implanted glucose monitor R&D A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Sensors for Medicine and Science (SMS; Germantown, Maryland) said it has completed the second closing of a private...

Washington roundup.
November 4, 2005... Washington roundup 8th coverage/reimbursement conference is set by MDMA A Medical Device Daily Staff Report The Medical Device Manufacturers Association (MDMA; Washington), one of the earliest proponents of medical device companies...

Grants/contracts.
November 4, 2005... Grants/contracts IRIS International in distribution pact with Abbott Molecular unit A Medical Device Daily Staff Writer IRIS International (Chatsworth, California), a manufacturer and marketer of automated IVD urinalysis systems...

People in Places.(appointments at medical equipment industry)
November 4, 2005... People in Places * Richard Setzer will join Allied Healthcare Products (St. Louis) as vice president of sales and marketing. Most recently, Setzer was global integration manager of the Health Imaging Division of Eastman Kodak. He replaces...

Isolagen in separation/release accord with former chairman.
November 4, 2005... Isolagen in separation/release accord with former chairman A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Frank DeLape has resigned as chairman of the board of Isolagen (Exagen, Pennsylvania) and as a director, terminating his employment with the...

Product Briefs.
November 4, 2005... Product Briefs * Gamma Medica-Ideas (Northridge, California), which is developing a new class of imaging systems that integrate multiple modalities to create more powerful diagnostic capabilities, said researchers from Harvard Medical...

Corautus Genetics granted Fast Track status for VEGF-2.
November 4, 2005... Corautus Genetics granted Fast Track status for VEGF-2 A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Corautus Genetics (Atlanta), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, reported that the FDA has granted Fast Track status for its Vascular...

FDA panel backs idea of OTC sale of OraSure's HIV tests.
November 7, 2005... FDA panel backs idea of OTC sale of OraSure's HIV tests By AARON LORENZO Medical Device Daily Washington Writer GAITHERSBURG, Maryland -- An FDA advisory panel last week came down in favor of eventual over-the-counter (OTC) sales...

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November 7, 2005... Deals roundup Olympus partners with Cytori, forming regenerative med j-v By RANDALL OSBORNE Medical Device Daily Staff Writers and Staff Reports Cytori Therapeutics (San Diego) reported the formation of a regenerative...

International report.
November 7, 2005... International report Medicsight to begin studies in China on CAD products A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Medicsight plc (London), a developer of computer-aided detection (CAD) software, said it will begin a clinical studies...

Anaplastology blends science, art in facial prosthetics niche.(Medical Art Prosthetics Clinic)
November 7, 2005... Anaplastology blends science, art in facial prosthetics niche By KIM URQUHART Medical Device Daily Staff Writer The prosthetic eyelids and fingers designed by anaplastologist Greg Gion may be passive -- meaning they don't blink or...

Immucor to cut regulatory costs by closing Houston facility.
November 7, 2005... Immucor to cut regulatory costs by closing Houston facility A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Saying that it needs to reduce the regulatory burden posed by operating two separate FDA-licensed facilities, Immucor (Norcross, Georgia),...

Briefly Noted.
November 7, 2005... Briefly Noted B&L delays quarterly filing Bausch & Lomb (B&L; Rochester, New York) on Friday said it has notified the Securities and Exchange Commission that it would delay the filing of its quarterly report ended Sept. 24 in order for...

Grants/contracts.
November 7, 2005... Grants/contracts $5M in tax breaks to boost Zimmer's R&D infrastructure A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Zimmer Holdings (Warsaw, Indiana) and Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels on Friday reported that that state plans to grant more...

Washington roundup.
November 7, 2005... Washington roundup CMS demonstration project aimed at ESRD patient care A Medical Device Daily Staff Report WASHINGTON -- The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS; Baltimore) has selected two organizations to participate...

Financings roundup.
November 7, 2005... Financings roundup Endocare adds $4M credit line; Synapse gets JumpStart funds A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Endocare (Irvine, California), which is focused on the development of minimally invasive technologies for tissue and...

People in Places.
November 7, 2005... People in Places * Luther Nussbaum has resigned as CEO, chairman, and director of First Consulting Group (FCG; Long Beach, California), effective immediately. Douglas Bergeron, a director of the company since August 2004, has been...

Product Briefs.
November 7, 2005... Product Briefs * ChondroGene (Toronto), focused on the application of functional genomics to enable early diagnosis and personalized therapeutic intervention based on disease-specific biomarkers, said that its paper titled "Blood-based...

Spurned Guidant files lawsuit vs. J&J to consummate merger.(Johnson & Johnson )
November 8, 2005... Spurned Guidant files lawsuit vs. J&J to consummate merger By HOLLAND JOHNSON Medical Device Daily Associate Managing Editor It appears that the $25.4 billion marriage of Guidant (Indianapolis) and Johnson & Johnson (J&J; New...

Financings roundup.(health care)
November 8, 2005... Financings roundup Aperio closes $17M 'B' round; HemoSense raises private $10M A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Aperio Technologies (Vista, California), a provider of virtual microscopy systems in the Healthcare IT industry,...

Report from Europe.
November 8, 2005... Report from Europe Kodak health group selected for Finland's e-health project A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Eastman Kodak's Health Group (Rochester, New York) reported being selected as the main supplier of the RATU e-health...

Purdue researchers study gold nanorods for contrast imaging.
November 8, 2005... Purdue researchers study gold nanorods for contrast imaging By KAREN YOUNG Medical Device Daily Staff Writer Researchers at Purdue University (West Lafayette, Indiana) are working on the development of what the university calls a...

Map of changes promises to unmask multitude of genes.
November 8, 2005... Map of changes promises to unmask multitude of genes By SHARON KINGMAN Medical Device Daily Contributing Writer LONDON -- While the Human Genome Project documented the 99.9% of the genome that is common to all of us, the...

Deals roundup.(medical equipment industry)
November 8, 2005... Deals roundup Owens & Minor acquires iCare; VirtualScopics in merger A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Owens & Minor (O&M; Richmond, Virginia) reported that its subsidiary Access Diabetic Supply has acquired certain operating...

Grants/contracts.
November 8, 2005... Grants/contracts Deal puts Invivo's DynaCAD into Siemens' Magnetom MRI A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Siemens Medical Solutions (Malvern, Pennsylvania) and Invivo (Pewaukee, Wisconsin), a subsidiary of Intermagnetics General,...

Court report.
November 8, 2005... Court report Applied Bio to take $2.4 million charge as result of arbitration A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Applied Biosystems (Foster City, California) said that it will record a pre-tax decrease of about $20.4 million to...

Product Briefs.(Refractec presents results for NearVision CK treatment)(Uroplasty receives FDA clearance for Urgent PC Neuromodulation System)(Welch Allyn introduces electrocardiographs)
November 8, 2005... Product Briefs * Refractec (Irvine, California) reported preliminary clinical results presented at the recent American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO; San Francisco) meeting in Chicago affirming the safety and efficacy of its NearVision CK...

People in Places.(appointments and promotions at medical industry)(Brief Article)
November 8, 2005... People in Places * Brent McCarty, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Accuro Healthcare Solutions (Dallas), has been promoted to president of the company. He will remain chief operating officer. Before coming to Accuro,...

Companies rushing to roll out new tests to detect avian flu.
November 9, 2005... Companies rushing to roll out new tests to detect avian flu By KAREN YOUNG Medical Device Daily Staff Writer As the avian flu virus gradually spreads worldwide, diagnostic firms are gearing up to meet the challenge. Qiagen...

Deals roundup.(mergers, acquisitions in medical equipment industry)
November 9, 2005... Deals roundup Varian's buy of Polymer Labs is valued at up to $65 million By HOLLAND JOHNSON Medical Device Daily Associate Managing Editor Life science company Varian (Palo Alto, California) reported that it has acquired PL...

Report from Europe.
November 9, 2005... Report from Europe Thoratec to launch HeartMate II in Europe with CE mark okay A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Thoratec (Pleasanton, California) reported that it has won CE-marking for its HeartMate II Left Ventricular Assist...

Center showcases hybrid OR for 'sighted' cardiac surgery.
November 9, 2005... Center showcases hybrid OR for 'sighted' cardiac surgery By CYNTHIA DRAKE, RN Medical Device Daily Contributing Writer The state-of-the art hybrid operating room/cath lab of Vanderbilt University Medical Center (Nashville,...

Clinical results 'too good to be true,' most likely are.
November 9, 2005... A Number Is Worth A Thousand Words Clinical results 'too good to be true,' most likely are By ANETTE BREINDL Medical Device Daily Contributing Science Writer Clinical trials that show a treatment effect early on face a...

Financings roundup.
November 9, 2005... Financings roundup Clearant set to raise $12 million; ThermoGenesis in OEM accord A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Clearant (Los Angeles), the developer of the Clearant Process for pathogen inactivation, said it has signed...

Briefly Noted.
November 9, 2005... Briefly Noted CRF relocates within Waltham CRF (Waltham, Massachusetts), which focuses on developing electronic Patient Reported Outcomes (e-PRO) and wireless data collection solutions for the biopharmaceutical industry, said that it...

Court report.
November 9, 2005... Court report PerkinElmer says derivative class action suits are dismissed A Medical Device Daily Staff Report PerkinElmer (Boston) reported that the purported class-action and derivative lawsuits filed in July 2002 and June 2004...

Grants/contracts.
November 9, 2005... Grants/contracts CMS awards Fresenius Medical subsidiary an ESRD program A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Toshiba America Medical Systems (TAMS; Tustin, California), which focuses on ultrasound technology, said it has entered an...

Product Briefs.
November 9, 2005... Product Briefs * CPC of America (Sarasota, Florida) reported that its subsidiary, Med Enclosure, was informed by the FDA that its MedClose Vascular Closure System (VCS) would be regulated under the medical device regulations, and the lead...

People in Places.(appointments at medical equipment industry)
November 9, 2005... People in Places * James Jeter has joined MedicalCV (Minneapolis) as the vice president of sales. Prior to MedicalCV, Jeter was a central states region manager for Medtronic. MedicalCV is a cardiovascular surgery company focused on...

Guidant issues enhanced CRM Product Performance report.
November 10, 2005... Guidant issues enhanced CRM Product Performance report By HOLLAND JOHNSON Medical Device Daily Associate Managing Editor In the wake of recent problems with its pacemakers and implantable cardioverter defibrillators, Guidant...

Financings roundup.
November 10, 2005... Financings roundup Versant closes $400M fund; FlowMedica in $15M 'D' round A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Healthcare venture capital firm Versant Ventures (Menlo Park, California) reported the closing of Versant Venture...

Report from Europe.
November 10, 2005... Report from Europe Molecular mimic could lead to new immunotherapeutics By Sharon Kingman Medical Device Daily Contributing Writer LONDON -- An artificial molecule that can activate a cell-surface receptor that plays a key...

SmartPill trial shows 'strong correlation' to scintigraphy.
November 10, 2005... SmartPill trial shows 'strong correlation' to scintigraphy By KAREN YOUNG Medical Device Daily Staff Writer The SmartPill Corporation (Buffalo, New York), developer of the SmartPill pH.p Capsule, a non-invasive medical device that...

Web seminar zeroes in on SUD reprocessing debate.
November 10, 2005... Web seminar zeroes in on SUD reprocessing debate By KAREN YOUNG Medical Device Daily Staff Writer On a much-reduced scale from most square-offs in Washington, it was one lawyer vs. another presenting differing points of view in a...

Grants/contracts.
November 10, 2005... Grants/contracts Corgenix participating in $3.8M grant for tests of viral fevers A Medical Device Daily Staff Report Corgenix Medical (Denver), in partnership with Tulane University (New Orleans), the U.S. Army Medical Research...

Briefly Noted.(pharma markets)(Brief Article)
November 10, 2005... Briefly Noted Hemosol not in compliance with Nasdaq Hemosol (Toronto) said that on Nov. 3, was notified by the Nasdaq market that for the previous 30 consecutive business days, the bid price of its common stock closed below the minimum...