A Medical Device Daily

The recent staging of China MED 2009, the 21st International Medical Instruments and Equipment Exhibition held in Beijing, featured 505 exhibitors from 22 countries showcasing their products over 322,900 square feet of exhibit space to 26,408 attendees.

Sponsor Messe Duesseldorf, which puts on the world's largest medical trade exposition, MEDICA, said CHINA MED 2009 featured not only IT technology, medical software, surgical instruments, medical diagnostics and imaging equipment, but also special exhibits for medical consumables, orthopedics, dental and rehabilitation equipment.

Messe Duesseldorf said the number of visitors confirmed the rapid growth and development of the Chinese medical care industry. About 30% of the visitors were from medical organization and R&D institutes, while 60% were wholesalers and distributors.

According to the People's Republic of China customs statistics, the export of medical devices, equipment and products from January to November 2008 was worth $3.2 billion, an increase of 31.4% compared to the same period of 2007.

Messe Dusseldorf said it is estimated that the peak for the Chinese medical industry development will be between 2008 and 2010.

It said CHINAMED 2009 exhibitors were pleased with the visitor quality and quantity. "It is encouraging that we have found both clients and supplier in this trade fair. The platform provided by CHINA MED enhances the interaction among the participants effectively. The large visitor participation makes me confident about China's future," said Thomas Gutridge of Blu-med. Zhang Ning of Ningbo Xingaoyi Co. Ltd. agreed, saying, "The percentage of trade visitors seems higher than ever. This is our first time we participated as an exhibitor and the results are good."

Jim Litter, vice president of service at Vital Image, said, "Sometimes we were too busy to have lunch because there were always visitors interested in our products."

The exhibits at CHINA MED 2009 were complemented by more than 50 symposiums on topics such as medical imaging equipment, logistics and large equipment quality assessment as well as seminars about orthopedic trauma, tumor imaging diagnosis and clinical laboratory science.

The next staging of CHINA MED is scheduled for March 2010 in Beijing.

Trial results reported for regen system

Clinical trial results using the regen system by Pollogen (Tel Aviv, Israel), the newest aesthetic solution powered by third-generation TriPollar RF technology on cellulite treatment and body contouring, have been published in the online Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.

The study, conducted by Dr. Manuskiatti, et al., at the Mahidol University Hospital (Bangkok, Thailand), was titled "Circumference reduction and cellulite treatment with a TriPollar radiofrequency device: a pilot study."

The company said the study "demonstrated long-term measurable and durable body circumference and fat thickness reduction using objective measurement system (ultrasound)."

The study involved 37 patients treated once a week with the regen system for a total of eight treatments. Results showed that there was significant circumference reduction of 3.5 cm on average at the abdomen with a maximum of 14.4 cm, and 1.71 cm reduction at the thigh with a maximum of 9.1 cm. These results were maintained four weeks following the last treatment. In addition, ultrasound measurements of the distance between the epidermis and the superficial fascia showed an average reduction of 10.5% in the thickness of adipose tissue with a maximum reduction of 39% at the thigh region.

"TriPollar is a truly innovative technology that delivers what patients worldwide have been waiting for- a pain free, safe and effective solution for body contouring," said Manuskiatti, lead investigator for the trial and associate professor in the department of dermatology at the Siniraj Hospital.

The company said the study "clearly demonstrated that TriPollar RF technology provides beneficial effects on the reduction of abdomen and thigh circumferences and an overall improvement in the appearance of cellulite."

Pollagen CEO Yfat Scialom said, "The study [showed] that the innovative TriPollar RF technology ... delivers consistent and effective results without pain and adverse side effects as proven once again by the leading scientists and labs in the world. Since the launch of Pollogen's professional anti-aging and body contouring products two years ago, we have successfully captured the attention of physicians and estheticians in over 50 countries worldwide."

Pollogen manufactures professional medical aesthetic devices, powered by the TriPollar third-generation radio drequency technology. The technology powers a full line of clinically proven, non-invasive and non-surgical treatment platforms for wrinkles, cellulite, circumference reduction and skin tightening.

The company's flagship aesthetic devices, apollo and regen, offer anti-aging treatments that deliver what the company described as "immediate and long-lasting results."

$500,000 in grants for Compugen

Compugen (Tel Aviv, Israel) reported that it has been notified by the Office of the Chief Scientist of Israel that it will receive grants totaling about $500,000 to support the company's drug and diagnostic product candidate discovery activities and continued capabilities enhancement.

The product candidate programs that will be supported by this funding are focused on discovering additional drug targets for antibody therapeutics and pre-clinical nucleic acid biomarkers for drug-induced toxicity. These activities, in large part, will be based on modifying and enhancing certain of the company's 10 existing discovery platforms

In addition, a portion of the funding will support the company's ongoing activities with respect to extending and enhancing its predictive discovery capabilities infrastructure.

Dr. Anat Cohen-Dayag, co-CEO of Compugen, said, "We are delighted by the continuing support of the Israel OCS with respect to multiple aspects of Compugen's broadly based predictive drug and diagnostic discovery efforts. The programs to be supported with these latest grants should result in both additional product candidates for development and licensing and further applications of our unique discovery capabilities."