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(A small sampling of results from a December 1, 2006 - March 15,
2007 MIB Abstract Alert search) |
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Business Update; Arthrosurface reports over 1,000 patients received implant for toe disease hallux rigidus
Immunotherapy Weekly. Atlanta: Dec 27, 2006. pg. 45
2006 DEC 27 - (NewsRx.com) -- Arthrosurface, Inc., the developer of less-invasive joint resurfacing systems, reports that more than 1,000 patients have now received the HemiCAP Great Toe implant.
Hallux rigidus is a disease that affects the head of the metatarsal often resulting in a painful and stiff first toe joint. This pain and stiffness can severely impact patients to the point where their daily activities become difficult and debilitating.
Carl Hasselman, clinical instructor at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, said, "The Arthrosurface implant is joint sparing because much of the metatarsal phalangeal joint (MPJ) is allowed to remain intact which is very different from all other MPJ implants on the market. It is minimally invasive and does not affect the soft tissue structures."
The HemiCAP product for the great toe is an example of how this technology can be applied to different joints throughout the body. Originally, Arthrosurface developed the technology for use in the major joints of the knee, hip and shoulder.
This article was prepared by Immunotherapy Weekly editors from staff and other reports. Copyright 2006, Immunotherapy Weekly via NewsRx.com.
Proquest Identifier: 1183428731
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Biomet wins gold-medal endorsement
Journal - Gazette. Ft. Wayne, Ind.: Feb 14, 2007. pg. 1.E
Kimberly Peterson The Journal Gazette
Mary Lou Retton's career as a world-respected gymnast and Olympic gold medalist made her an American icon, but her estimated 150,000 career vaults took a toll on her body.
In June 2005, after three years of living in severe, chronic pain, Retton underwent a total hip replacement at age 36.
"I was told by a lot of people, `You're too young,' " Retton said. "But when you're consumed with pain, it's all-consuming and you're ready to rip your hair out." Retton said that normal activities such as getting out of bed or playing with her four young daughters became chores.
Now, less than two years after the surgery, Retton is so happy with the results that Thursday afternoon she will address the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons' annual meeting to tell surgeons her story and how her hip, provided by Warsaw-based Biomet Orthopedics Inc., changed her life.
"I'm so pleased, and my pain is gone," Retton said in a telephone interview from her home. Retton said now she can play tag, kickball and whiffle ball with her daughters, activities she said she could never have imagined doing before the surgery.
After extensive rehabilitation to rebuild her muscles, Retton said she can now touch the floor with the palm of her hand and sit cross-legged, two things that were important for her after the surgery. Retton said she wants people to know that life can continue after hip replacement.
"That's a big part of my message, you will live a normal and active life after this surgery," Retton said.
Stacey Jones, marketing manager for Biomet Inc., said Retton is the first well-known spokeswoman to endorse a Biomet product. Jones said Biomet is committed to raising awareness about surgical options available to consumers.
"We believe in educating consumers about treatment options," Jones said.
Retton received a Biomet M2a-Magnum metal-on-metal hip replacement system, which 17,000 patients have received since the implant's introduction in November 2004.
Biomet is not the only company committed to consumer education about orthopedic options available. DePuy Orthopaedics Inc., another Warsaw-based orthopedic manufacturer, also conducts direct campaigns to educate consumers about available options.
"Our simple goal ... is to educate patients and have them ask their surgeons about it. Our goal is to help them go through the process sooner," said Jessica Masuga, spokeswoman for DePuy.
The company conducted a study last year that found many patients wait up to 10 years with joint pain before undergoing surgery, and during that time can gain up to 40 pounds as mobility decreases. In addition, the company's study also found that women are two times more likely than men to suffer joint pain, but three times less likely to have surgery.
To address women who might not normally seek surgery, DePuy in March partnered with actress Angela Lansbury to launch a national campaign educating women about knee replacement and dispelling myths about surgery.
"We thought Angela had a compelling story," Masuga said. "The thinking was, `If Angela Lansbury did it, maybe I can do it, too.' "
Masuga said the more public a person is, the more recall their message has with consumers. But in addition to celebrity endorsement, DePuy also tries to reach consumers by telling stories of average patients. DePuy also conducts patient events in cities nationwide, in which local surgeons discuss the knee replacement process with prospective patients.
"I would say we consider ourselves a patient-centric company," Masuga said. Often, though, she said, communicating with patients is effectively done by educating surgeons about the options.
"It's a partnership with the surgeons to come up with the right way to communicate to patients," Masuga said.
Zimmer Inc., another major orthopedics manufacturer based in Warsaw, has patient testimonials listed on the company's Web site related to hip, knee and spinal surgery.
While Retton will not address the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons until Thursday, the group's annual meeting runs from today through Sunday in San Diego. Orthopedics manufacturers will unveil hundreds of new implants and products at the conference.
Among the dozens of new products DePuy is unveiling is a hip system that is more durable and allows the patient to be more active.
The Ultamet XL is a metal-on-metal hip replacement system that offers increased durability and more stability than previous DePuy models because it is designed with a larger ball, more like the shape of the bone it replaces.
"We're getting closer to your natural anatomy," said Paul Berman, product director for DePuy.
Biomet officials said they will debut about 100 new products at the conference but declined to provide details.
Hip replacement is projected to be a growing business as baby boomers get older and need joints replaced. According to information from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, about 375,000 Americans undergo hip replacement surgery each year. By 2030, the number of hip replacements is expected to increase to 572,000 a year.
Retton said that as a spokeswoman she wants to convey the message that patients shouldn't wait to have surgery.
"If you are a person living with some kind of joint pain. ... Do your research; find a doctor you're comfortable with. Don't wait like I did," Retton said.
Proquest Identifier: 1217012421
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Smith & Nephew could succumb to private equity HEATHCARE; [LONDON 1ST EDITION]
Financial Times. London (UK): Dec 27, 2006. pg. 16
SALAMANDER DAVOUDI
Smith & Nephew is vulnerable to a takeover bid from private equity groups, according to corporate brokers, after Europe's biggest medical devices company was knocked out of the auction for Biomet, its US rival.
Analysts believe S&N's failure to close the deal - its second attempt to bulk up in size in three years - makes it a target for private equity rather than industry buyers.
Financial sponsors are considered to be the most likely buyers because they would not face the same regulatory hurdles that rival trade companies would.
"We maintain the view that an industry bid is unlikely due to the anti-competitive marker share positions an acquiror of S&N would gain. Therefore the most likely source of a bid would be from private equity," the team at Dresdner Kleinwort said. It values S&N at 537p a share. The shares closed at 533p last Friday.
Some analysts believe that the private equity consortium that bought Biomet for Dollars 10.9bn (Pounds 5.6bn) could bid for S&N with the aim of putting both companies together and floating the enlarged group within a few years.
However, others believe S&N is well positioned to restructure itself. The healthcare team at UBS, for example, said it could"benefit from improving top-line growth from strong orthopaedic launches".
Lehman Brothers said the group could also benefit from a turnround in the wound management business - a division S&N had planned to sell had it won the Biomet auction.
The bank believes that S&N's new management team led by Adrian Hennah, chief financial officer, is more "dynamic and better focused on cost control".
Investors will also be keen to hear the results of S&N's cost- saving program, which will be relayed to the market in the first quarter of 2007.
S&N generates half its revenue from its core orthopaedic business, which manufactures hip and knee implants. Half of all sales are generated in the US. The global hip and knee market is rising at an annual rate of 6 per cent because of an ageing and affluent baby-boomer generation.
Proquest Identifier: 1186294281
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Life Sciences; Research data from Stryker Orthopaedics update understanding of life sciences
Life Science Weekly. Atlanta: Mar 6, 2007. pg. 1155
2007 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com) -- A new study, "The potential for bone loss in acetabular structures following THA," is now available. According to recent research published in the journal Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, "Attempts to preserve periacetabular bone stock following total hip replacement have largely ignored the potential for stress shielding in the acetabulum. We sought to quantify the change in stress distribution in acetabular bone with components of varying material stiffness by developing a high-resolution 3-D finite element model from CT scans of a young female donor."
"Periprosthetic bone stresses and strains on the left pelvis were compared with hemispherical cups of various material properties and with a horseshoe shaped polymeric design described in the recent literature. We observed unphysiologic periacetabular bone stress and strain fields for all designs tested. For hemispherical components, reduction of the acetabular shell material modulus caused modest changes in bone stress compared to the changes in implant geometry. The horseshoe shaped cup more effectively loaded the acetabular structures than the hemispherical design. Our results suggest stress and strain fields in pelvic structures after introduction of hemispherical acetabular components predict inevitable bone adaptation that can not be resolved by changes in implant material properties alone," wrote M.T. Manley and colleagues, Stryker Orthopaedics.
The researchers concluded: "Radical changes in implant design may be necessary for long-term maintenance of supporting structures in the reconstructed acetabulum."
Manley and colleagues published their study in Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research (The potential for bone loss in acetabular structures following THA. Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, 2006;453():246-53).
For additional information, contact M.T. Manley, Stryker Orthopaedics, Mahwah, NJ USA.
The publisher's contact information for the journal Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research is: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 530 Walnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19106-3621, USA.
Proquest Identifier: 1225245441
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Corin's Cormet 2000 Hip Resurfacing System Is "Approvable With Conditions"
The Gray Sheet. Chevy Chase: Feb 26, 2007. Vol. 33, Iss. 9; pg. 3
<<No Abstract Available>>
Proquest Identifier: 1229040011
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Zimmer set on growing spine sector Company acquires maker of spinal- surgery products
Journal - Gazette. Ft. Wayne, Ind.: Feb 10, 2007. pg. 8.B
Kimberly Peterson The Journal Gazette
Zimmer Holdings Inc. on Friday announced the acquisition of a spinal product manufacturer for an undisclosed amount.
Endius Inc., a privately held Plainville, Mass.-based manufacturer, will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Zimmer when the transaction is complete, Zimmer said in a prepared statement. The company expects to complete the transaction during the second quarter.
"We have indicated since 2003 that one of our top priorities is to invest in growing our spinal business," Ray Elliott, Zimmer's chairman, president and chief executive officer, said in the statement.
Endius, founded in 1997, has more than 40 employees. The company specializes in developing minimally invasive spine surgery products, implants and techniques to treat spine disease.
Zimmer said it intends to maintain Endius' current operations in Massachusetts, while it works to integrate the company into its existing Zimmer Spine business unit, which is headquartered in the Minneapolis area.
The successful integration of a past acquisition may have allowed the company to make the move for Endius. In 2003, Zimmer acquired Zurich-based Centerpulse AG. In the statement for the company's 2005 annual report, Elliott said, "Since the acquisition of Centerpulse, we have generated almost $2 billion of operating cash flow and we intend to use our excess cash primarily for biologics, dental and spine acquisitions."
Zimmer, which employs nearly 7,000 people worldwide and has operations in more than 24 countries, had 2006 sales of about $3.5 billion.
On Friday, Zimmer's stock closed down $1.33, or 1.56 percent, to close at $83.76 on the New York Stock Exchange.
Proquest Identifier: 1215535381
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SpineVision Establishes Wholly Owned Subsidiary in the UK
Health Business Week March 9, 2007
SpineVision(R) announced that it has established a wholly owned direct sales subsidiary near London, effective immediately.
The operation is led by Raymond Thomasen, who was previously Vice President Europe, MEA, for Wright Medical Technology for three years, making the UK territory Wright's highest growth market for two of those years. Prior to Wright Medical, Mr. Thomasen held various positions during eight years with Stryker in the Middle East, Africa and the United Kingdom, and was twice honored as "European Sales Manager of the Year." Mr. Thomasen began his medical devices career in 1986 with C. R. Bard, moving to 3M and then Smith & Nephew in 1989, where he held several positions during his five-year tenure.
"Ray Thomasen is a very experienced and successful sales-and-marketing executive with significant experience in the device market in general and in the UK territory in particular," said Julian Mackenzie, SpineVision's CEO. "We expect Ray to ramp-up quickly and hire at least 10 direct sales representatives or agents in the near term to begin calling on neurosurgeons and spine surgeons throughout England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Ray's group will be looking for opportunities related to distributing other companies' products, if they are complementary. We believe that our PediGuard(TM) product, which has blockbuster potential, will open a lot of doors right off for Ray and his team."
SpineVision sells its motion preservation and fusion products directly in France, the United States, Italy and Belgium, and utilizes highly qualified distributors in 10 other countries, which include Egypt, Finland, Greece, Ireland, Israel, Luxembourg, Portugal, South Africa, Spain and Turkey. SpineVision expects to add additional market coverage in 2007 in Australia, Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Singapore, and in Japan in 2008.
The address for SpineVision's UK operation is: Regus House, Herons Way, Chester Business Park, Chester CH4 9QR ENGLAND. Phone: +44 (0)1244 893208. Fax: +44 (0)1244 893310.
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Effects of implant design parameters on fluid convection, potentiating third-body debris ingress into the bearing surface during THA impingement/subluxation.
J Biomech. 2007 Mar 30; [Epub ahead of print]
Lundberg HJ, Pedersen DR, Baer TE, Muste M, Callaghan JJ, Brown TD.
Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA; Biomedical Engineering, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.
Aseptic loosening from polyethylene wear debris is the leading cause of failure for metal-on-polyethylene total hip implants. Third-body debris ingress to the bearing space results in femoral head roughening and acceleration of polyethylene wear. How third-body particles manage to enter the bearing space between the closely conforming articulating surfaces of the joint is not well understood. We hypothesize that one such mechanism is from convective fluid transport during subluxation of the total hip joint. To test this hypothesis, a three-dimensional (3D) computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model was developed and validated, to quantify fluid ingress into the bearing space during a leg-cross subluxation event. The results indicated that extra-articular joint fluid could be drawn nearly to the pole of the cup with even very small separations of the femoral head (<0.60mm). Debris suspended near the equator of the cup at the site of maximum fluid velocity just before the subluxation began could be transported to within 11 degrees from the cup pole. Larger head diameters resulted in increased fluid velocity at all sites around the entrance to the gap compared to smaller head sizes, with fluid velocity being greatest along the anterosuperolateral cup edge, for all head sizes. Fluid pathlines indicated that suspended debris would reach similar angular positions in the bearing space regardless of head size. Increased inset of the femoral head into the acetabular cup resulted both in higher fluid velocity and in transport of third-body debris further into the bearing space.
PreMedline Identifier: 17400230
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Avascular necrosis of the femoral head: inter- and intraobserver variations of Ficat and ARCO classifications.
Int Orthop. 2007 Mar 30; [Epub ahead of print]
Schmitt-Sody M, Kirchhoff C, Mayer W, Goebel M, Jansson V.
Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University Hospital Grosshadern, Marchioninistrasse 15, 81377, Munich, Germany, mschmitt@med.uni-muenchen.de.
Diagnosis of avascular necrosis (AVN) of the femoral head depends on the combination of clinical symptoms and evaluation of radiographs and/or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). To evaluate the evolution of AVN, the Ficat and the Association Research Circulation Osseous (ARCO) classification are commonly used to assess both imaging modalities. For comparison reasons, these classifications need to be reliable and reproducible to provide sufficient therapy options for the patient. Therefore, the aim of our study was to evaluate the interobserver reliability and the intraobserver reproducibility of these classifications. Patients with suspected AVN were examined using either radiographs or radiographs and MRI. The radiographs and/or MR images were reviewed initially and at 3 months by two general orthopaedic surgeons, two orthopaedic residents, and two general radiologists using the Ficat classification for radiographs and MR images as well as the ARCO classification for MR images only. In all, 38 patients (54 hips) were enrolled. There were 10 patients who presented with radiographs and 28 patients with radiographs and MR scans. Paired comparisons revealed a mean interobserver kappa reliability coefficient of 0.39 for the first and of 0.32 for the second review using the Ficat classification for radiographs, whereas for the MR images a mean of 0.39 in the first and of 0.34 in the second reading resulted. The MRI evaluation using the ARCO classification resulted in a mean interobserver reliability coefficient of 0.37 in the first and of 0.31 in the second reading. The mean kappa value for intraobserver reproducibility using the Ficat classification was 0.52 for radiographs and 0.50 for MR images, whereas a reproducibility of 0.43 resulted for the ARCO classification. This study showed poor interobserver reliability and fair intraobserver variability, diminishing any meaningful comparison of studies using the Ficat as well as the ARCO classification. Thus, the Ficat and ARCO staging systems are still not sufficient to reliably assess the status of AVN alone.
PreMedline Identifier: 17396260
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Gait analysis of patients with resurfacing hip arthroplasty compared with hip osteoarthritis and standard total hip arthroplasty.
J Arthroplasty. 2007 Jan;22(1):100-8.
Mont MA, Seyler TM, Ragland PS, Starr R, Erhart J, Bhave A.
Rubin Institute for Advanced Orthopedics, Center for Joint Preservation and Reconstruction, Sinai Hospital of Baltimore, Baltimore, Maryland 21215, USA.
Patients with standard total hip arthroplasties may have reduced hip abduction and extension moments when compared with normal nonosteoarthritic hips. In comparison, patients after resurfacing total hip arthroplasty appear to have a near-normal gait. The authors evaluated temporal-spatial parameters, hip kinematics, and kinetics in hip resurfacing patients compared with patients with unilateral osteoarthritic hips and unilateral standard total hip arthroplasties. Patients with resurfacing walked faster (average 1.26 m/s) and were comparable with normals. There were no significant differences in hip abductor and extensor moments of patients with resurfacing compared with patients in the standard hip arthroplasty group. This study showed more normal hip kinematics and functionality in resurfacing hip arthroplasty, which may be due to the large femoral head.
PreMedline Identifier: 17197316
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Tribological investigation of novel HDPE-HAp-Al(2)O(3) hybrid biocomposites against steel under dry and simulated body fluid condition.
J Biomed Mater Res A. 2007 Mar 30; [Epub ahead of print]
Nath S, Bodhak S, Basu B.
Laboratory for Advanced Ceramics, Department of Materials and Metallurgical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, IIT-Kanpur, Kanpur 208016, India.
Among various biocompatible polymers, polyethylene based materials have received wider attention because of its excellent stability in body fluid, inertness, and easy formability. Attempts have been made to improve their physical properties (modulus/strength) to enable them to be used as load bearing hard tissue replacement applications. Among such attempts, high density polyethylene (HDPE)-hydroxyapatite (HAp) composite (HAPEX(TM)), has already been developed for total hip replacement (THR) acetabular cup and low load bearing bone tissue replacement. In the present work, alumina has been added as a partial replacement of HAp phase to improve the mechanical and tribological properties of the HAPEX composite. In an attempt to assess the suitability of the developed composite in THR application, the tribological properties against steel counterbody under both in air and simulated body fluid (SBF), have been investigated and efforts have been made to understand the wear mechanisms. The fretting wear study indicates the possibility of achieving extremely low COF (Coefficient of Friction approximately 0.09) as well as higher wear resistance (order of 10(-6) mm(3)/N m) with the newly developed composites in SBF. A low wear depth of approximately 4.6-5.3 mum is recorded, irrespective of fretting environment. The implication of the work is that optimal and combined addition of bioactive and bioinert ceramic filler to HDPE can provide a good opportunity to obtain hybrid biocomposites with better combination of physical properties (modulus, hardness) as well as low friction and high wear resistance. (c) 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res, 2007.
PreMedline Identifier: 17397040
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