June 2nd, 2009BRYAN® Cervical Disc, a product of Medtronic Sofamor Danek we first profiled back in 2007, has now been approved by the FDA. The implant, composed of a polyurethane and titanium discs designed to fit between adjacent vertebral bodies in the neck, is indicated "in skeletally mature patients for reconstruction of the disc from C3-C7...
June 1st, 2009The Food and Drug Administration has announced approval of the Scandinavian Total Ankle Replacement (STAR) system from Small Bone Innovations, Inc. This implantable total ankle replacement system is intended for use in patients where there is severe arthritis or other deformities that hinder the range of motion of the joint.
Small Bone...
May 22nd, 2009Tornier Inc. (Edina, MN) has just announced that the first implant of a shoulder arthroplasty comprised of pyrocarbon occured in France. This is not the first time we have covered the use of pyrocarbon, or pyrolytic carbon as it is commonly referred to, in medical devices, but it is a new application.
Pyrocarbon, developed as nuclear...
May 20th, 2009
While we have reported on mobile handheld ultrasounds for phones, for those of you that have not joined the iPhone/Smartphone revolution, you are now in luck. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has just approved the Signos device, a handheld self-contained portable ultrasound imager with a probe. The system might come in handy as a...
We have previously reported on implantable micro-devices that can be directed to specific locations in the body. Now comes word that researchers at the NanoRobotics Laboratory at École Polytechnique de Montréal have developed a solar-powered micro-device less than the size of one tenth of a millimeter in square area to...
May 15th, 2009The iPhone has a new competitor in mobile medical applications. Unbound Medicine has announced the availability of medical references for smartphones running the Android™ platform. The initial applications available are:
5-Minute Clinical Consult for Mobile + Web
Nursing Central
Davis's Drug Guide Mobile & Web...
May 7th, 2009Medtronic won FDA approval, and is consequently making available, the Attain Ability® left-heart lead (Model 4196) for use with cardiac resynchronization devices. The lead is composed of an advanced aerospace resin, named Langley Research Center's Soluble Imide, or LaRC-SI, and is the first time material developed by NASA has been...
April 29th, 2009Varian Medical Systems has introduced a new bronchoscopic brachytherapy applicator set, the Centering Intraluminal Applicator™, that the company says will increase treatment precision and aid comfort for patients suffering from bronchial cancer.
According to the press release, the new system features a novel catheter that enables...
April 24th, 2009The Food and Drug Administration held a rare all staff meeting on Wednesday within the Office of Device Evaluation. The NY Times cited an internal email memorandum sent by Dr. Donna-Bea Tillman, the Deputy Director for Clinical Affairs within the Office of Device Evaluation, calling for a meeting to discuss the "strategic direction of...
April 22nd, 2009Ossur, a developer of prosthetic implants, announced that last week its second generation Power Knee bionic prosthesis was implanted in a patient at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
The Power Knee uses sensor and actuators, coupled with artificial intelligence to better mimic natural walking with less effort by the patient.
In 2006,...
April 22nd, 2009
We have previously reported on C-Pulse™ Heart Assist device, an external aortic counterpulsation support system from Australian firm Sunshine Heart Company Pty Limited, designed to give an extra boost to patients with severe cardiomyopathy. The company and Ohio State University have just announced that the first two patients of...
