• SpineAlign Medical (San Jose, California) reported presentations of data using the SpineAlign System. One research claimed that "the SpineAlign implant worked well at restoring the vertebral body, lifting the endplates and allowing height restoration to be maintained until bone cement was injected. It also allowed me to slowly inject the bone cement, significantly reducing the risk of extravasation associated with traditional vertebroplasty." The SpineAlign device is a vertebral body implant designed to treat fractures in the thoracic or lumbar spine in patients suffering from osteoporosis. The SpineAlign Implant is an expandable metal device made from nickel-titanium (Nitinol) alloy that provides internal scaffolding to engage the vertebral body endplates, while providing and maintaining lift until bone cement is injected.

• US HIFU (Charlotte, North Carolina) has introduced a new software component, called Tissue Change Monitoring (TCM), to its Sonablate 500 medical device that will enhance its existing minimally invasive treatment for prostate cancer using HIFU, high intensity focused ultrasound, by enabling physicians to monitor prostatic tissue changes in real-time. TCM is a quantitative software module that provides feedback to the physician on the status of the ablative therapy in real-time so physicians know exactly what is happening to the prostatic tissue during HIFU. A radio frequency signal (RF) is sent to a precise site in the prostate before the physician treats it with ultrasound energy. Another signal is sent following the ultrasound delivery, which quantifies the change that actually took place. TCM results are color-coded and displayed on the Sonablate 500 screen and overlaid on a sagittal image, enabling doctors to determine immediately how much change there was in the tissue at that particular site.

• Welch Allyn (Skaneateles Falls, New York) has released a new wireless connectivity module for the Spot Vital Signs LXi. The radio was designed specifically for the medical market, and it operates on hospitals' existing wireless systems using 802.11 a/b/g technology. Using this new module, the wireless Spot Vital Signs LXi transmits vital signs data to an electronic medical record (EMR) through the company's Connex Data Management software–eliminating the need for clinicians to manually input data.

• Wright Medical Group (Arlington, Tennessee) reported the launch of its Coretrak Articulating External Fixator, which is the latest addition to Wright's suite of products for foot and ankle surgeons. The device addresses a growing need for minimally invasive solutions that respect the body's natural ability to heal, which is particularly important for the growing population of diabetics who are already at a high risk for surgical complications.