• Advanced Cell Technology (Worcester, Massachusetts) and CHA Biotech (Seoul, South Korea) have formed a joint venture to develop human blood cells and vascular repair treatments, based on ACT's hemangioblast cell technology. CHA will provide the JUV'sw working capital and will be the majority owner of the new company, called Allied Cell Technology, based in Worcester. ACT will license its technology to the JV and will receive $500,000 from CHA.
  • Cardima (Fremont, California) has engaged Peerless Medical (St. Louis) as the distributor for the Cardima Surgical Ablation System in the Midwest, including the St. Louis, Kansas City, Wichita, Topeka and Omaha markets. Peerless, which has relationships with cardiac surgeons in these territories, will market Cardima's Surgical Ablation System and solutions for cardiac patient care. The Surgical Ablation System incorporates a microcatheter-based surgical probe coupled with Cardima's Intellitemp, a radiofrequency energy management device. The probe incorporates irrigation, suction and illumination, which aid in placement and lesion depth. The system is able to create deep, long, linear and transmural cardiac lesions without gaps. The small, flexible design offers sole port-hole access, potentially decreasing procedure time, patient hospital stay and discomfort. Cardima has developed the Pathfinder, Tracer and Revelation series of diagnostic catheters, the VUEPORT and NAVIPORT Series of guiding catheters, the INTELLITEMP Energy Management Device and the Surgical Ablation System.
  • CHF Solutions (Brooklyn Park, Minnesota) completed an agreement with Premier (San Diego) in which a new category, Aquapheresis Therapy Products, has been created for CHF products, which are now available to hospitals and other healthcare sites of the Premier Healthcare Alliance. CHF President/CEO David Springer said, "Clinical studies and experience have proven Aquapheresis therapy provides superior clinical outcomes for heart failure patients with fluid overload, while reducing the length of hospital stays and costly readmissions." Aquapheresis therapy is a method of removing excess salt and water from patients with fluid overload.
  • Goodroe Healthcare Solutions (Atlanta) said the Office of the Inspector General has approved a two-year gainsharing project for cardiac catheterization lab and special procedures lab patients. The project helps hospitals share cost savings with physicians who help them achieve operational efficiencies. Goodroe said its gainsharing model is used in clinical areas where physicians control the majority of costs, such as cardiac catheterization procedures, open-heart surgery and orthopedic and spine procedures. The company said it has used its gainsharing methodology to identify nearly $75 million in savings for hospitals while ensuring quality of care.
  • Telesso Technologies (Sydney, Australia) entered into an agreement with Vascular Pathways (VPI; California) to fund a multi-center clinical trial of VPI's guidewire device and to potentially acquire VPI. A peripheral vein is the most common site for insertion of a catheter for short-term diagnostic or therapeutic use. The catheter is placed into the peripheral vein in the arm, below the elbow and is typically passed up inside the vein 2" to 3". VPI's technology uses a retractable nitinol guidewire system that Telesso anticipates will result in more reliable peripheral IV placement with less patient discomfort. Telesso said VPI's device is the first clinically meaningful advancement in peripheral IV access since automatic needle retraction catheters and addresses significant unmet needs in peripheral intravenous access. Telesso expects that VPI's clinical trials will be conducted at hospitals in the U.S. and Israel. Peter Rosenthal, PhD, a member of VPI's board, said, "Since our technology already has FDA approval, our clinical trial of roughly 300 patients is designed to be a side-by-side comparison with traditional catheters to clearly measure our device's distinct advantages." Trial sites have been identified and the trial is scheduled to begin in 1Q09.
  • Zoll Medical (Chelmsford, Massachusetts) and Masimo (Irvine, California) reported a multi-year technology agreement to integrate Masimo's Rainbow SET technology into Zoll E Series defibrillators. The agreement allows Zoll to manufacture these defibrillators with this technology, which non-invasively and continuously measures carbon monoxide (SpCO) and methemoglobin (SpMet) levels in the blood. "Masimo Rainbow SET Pulse CO-Oximetry non-invasively delivers the advanced clinical intelligence that today's EMS and fire professionals need to accurately diagnose and treat victims of carbon monoxide poisoning," said Zoll Chairman/CEO Richard Packer. "This agreement will allow us to add this important parameter in the future to help rescuers advance their lifesaving efforts." Masimo Rainbow SET has the potential to help clinicians improve patient outcomes through more rapid diagnosis of potentially life-threatening conditions – including carbon monoxide poisoning and methemoglobinemia – allowing them to make better and earlier treatment decisions. Separately, Zoll reported that HealthTrust Purchasing Group (Brentwood, Tennessee), a group purchasing organization, has entered into a purchasing agreement with it. Effective Oct. 1, HealthTrust members are able to purchase medical devices from Zoll, initially including the R Series and M Series professional defibrillators and the AED Plus and AED Pro. The contract portfolio consists of physician preference products as well as advanced technology products and equipment.