Medical Devices Today

Hospitals Up the Ante in Device Purchasing Decisions

Article preview from Medtech Insight - December 01, 2010

In many US hospitals, materials, purchasing, and supply chain executives often have the clout to influence thumbs-up or thumbs-down decisions on most new products that enter the building. That is one major reason why medical device manufacturers are waking up to the fact that so-called "me-too" items and minor upgrades to existing products aren't as acceptable to hospitals as they once were. But in the evolving market in materials office supplies, smart manufacturers with a clear path to working alongside materials executives offer products that keep costs down, add to patient safety, and enhance patient care.

NDI Medical's Spin-Off Model for Neurostimulation

Article preview from Start-Up - June, 2010

The neurostimulation market is becoming electric for many large companies looking for major growth opportunities. Worth $1.3 billion in the US in 2009, the neurostimulation market is expected to grow to $2.7 billion by the year 2014. Those robust figures take into account some fourteen different clinical product categories, some of the largest being Alzheimer's disease, chronic pain, depression, epilepsy, obstructive sleep apnea, obesity, and stroke. In fact, that's the beauty of neurostimulation for medical device companies: it offers a single platform technology that can be leveraged over multiple, large product areas. But what model most efficiently helps a company with core expertise in neurostimulation - the knowledge of impulse generators and leads and their interface with nerves, power sources, and controllers - leverage that knowledge over numerous product areas? NDI Medical has its own strategy with a for-profit incubator solely focused on neurostimulation.

Building Interventional Gynecology

Article preview from Start-Up - June, 2010

Once a sluggish category for clinical innovation, gynecology is drawing new venture-backed companies eager to build upon the lead created by first-generation companies operating in minimally-invasive endometrial ablation and female sterilization. First generation companies had the difficult task of creating paths to early adopters of minimally invasive procedures. These now exist, and the clinical specialty appears to be also evolving in ways that encourage the growth of in-office procedures.

Comparative Effectiveness Hits Medical Devices

Article preview from Medtech Insight- May, 2010

Converging provider, payor and regulatory forces are making comparative effectiveness and evidence of value top priority issues for device companies. This article was excerpted from the March 2010 issue of In Vivo.

Bioactive Technologies for Bone Replacement

Article preview from Medtech Insight - April, 2010

The global market for orthobiologics, comprised primarily of bone replacement materials, reached almost $2 billion in 2009 and is growing at an overall rate of 7%. Medtronic leads in bone replacement with a 45% market share, but overall growth in orthobiologics may come from emerging segments, particular synthetic and stem-cell based technologies.

The Future of Connected Health

Article preview from Medtech Insight - March, 2010

To succeed in today's market, medical devices not only have to incorporate the latest technology, they also must have the ability to treat patients in the safest and most affordable fashion. A number of efforts in this area are underway, including the movement for "connected health," which requires medical devices to be able to communicate with other devices or systems in the expanding and remote health care arena. In a recent interview, Medtech Insight spoke about the changing environment with Pamela McNamara, president of US operations at Cambridge Consultants Inc. She notes that a medical device is only a single component in a much larger system of operation, and manufacturers need to develop and improve products with that in mind.

Radial Approach to Angioplasty Gaining Momentum

Article preview from Medtech Insight - March, 2010

If technology changes and clinical outcomes assert their influence over standard protocols, an increasing number of Americans patients will undergo coronary angioplasty through the radial artery in their wrist, not the femoral artery in their groin. As studies are beginning to portray more clearly, those patients are likely to be more comfortable postprocedure, exhibit less bleeding, and recover more quickly than patients treated treated with the traditional femoral approach.

The Next Wave in Peripheral Vascular Interventions

Article preview reprinted from Medtech Insight - March 2010

The market for interventional devices designed to treat peripheral artery disease has long taken a backseat to the more high-profile interventional cardiology arena. However, with competitive and economic pressures now driving down prices and profits for coronary stents, manufacturers and investors alike are turning their attention to the still underpenetrated PAD opportunity, where device advancements are expanding the treatable patient population and could drive strong revenue growth in the years ahead. Read more...

Dealmaking in 2009: A Look Back and A Glance Ahead

Article preview reprinted from Medtech Insight - February 2010

This article was excerpted from "Top Device Stories of 2009: A Year of Economic Revival and Regulatory Risk," IN VIVO, January 2010. Read more...

Cardiac Imaging and CER: The Search for Efficiency

Article preview reprinted from Medtech Insight - February 2010

Regardless of the final shape of health care reform legislation, there is little doubt that the swirling debate around that issue has highlighted an unambiguous need to reduce health system costs, increase efficiency, and improve patient outcomes. This is particularly true for high-cost diagnostics in crucial areas like cardiac care. The focus on fast-rising care costs has ratcheted up the pressure to reduce the number and fine-tune the quality of cardiac imaging procedures. And perhaps nothing signifies change in this area more than the introduction of comparative effectiveness research into the equation in the search for standards of care. Read more...