• Conmed Linvatec's (Utica, New York) arthroscopy unit received FDA clearance for marketing of the Bio Mini-Revo suture anchor for use in the repair of the labrum in the hip joint. The hip labrum is a form of cartilage that lines the rim of the socket of the hip. Torn and detached labral tissue is associated with hip pain during movement. In an arthroscopic technique, surgeons use suture anchors to reattach the torn cartilage to the rim of the socket to relieve pain and regain normal hip function. The Bio Mini-Revo anchor is a bioabsorbable 3.1 mm diameter screw-in anchor manufactured from Conmed Linvatec's self-reinforced 96L/4D Poly Lactic Acid. This material provides what the company terms an "optimal balance of strength (during the initial healing period post-surgery) with enhanced resorption over time, negating the need for a second surgery to remove the implant." The anchor is pre-threaded with #2 Hi-Fi high-strength sutures. Conmed makes surgical devices and equipment for minimally invasive procedures and monitoring.

• Duramed Pharmaceuticals (Pomona, New York) said that its AmniScreen product is the first and only FDA-approved at-home screening test for amniotic fluid leakage during pregnancy, a condition that may lead to serious complications such as infection and pre-term labor. AmniScreen is available by prescription and can be purchased in retail pharmacies. AmniScreen is a panty liner test that offers at-home screening for pregnant women who experience unexplained vaginal wetness. One AmniScreen test kit contains three panty liners and three drying trays.

• Invitrogen (Carlsbad, California) reported the launch of Dynabeads MAX Legionella, which enables a process for targeting and concentrating legionella from environmental water samples. The Dynabeads MAX Legionella provides a rapid and highly reliable sample preparation process, improving the method used, and result achieved, for the detection and quantification of legionella. Typical procedures for legionella surveillance involve complicated filtration and subsequent culture steps. The filters collect large quantities of other organisms that grow in culture along with legionella, requiring subsequent re-culturing of suspected legionella bacteria. In addition, many of the contaminating organisms can inhibit the growth of the legionella bacteria and produce false negatives. Dynabeads MAX Legionella uses magnetic Dynabeads with antibodies that attach to legionella and selectively isolate and concentrate the bacterium from the sample, eliminating contaminating microorganisms. Invitrogen makes science technologies for research, production and diagnostics.

• Nomir Medical Technologies (Waltham, Massachusetts) said it will present an abstract detailing positive in vitro and in vivo human data from its study of onychomycosis (toenail fungus) using Noveon, a dual-wavelength optical energy device. Noveon is designed to effect near-infrared photo-inactivation of fungi and bacteria at energies and temperatures that are safe to normal and healthy tissue. The data will be presented in a digital session at the New Cardiovascular Horizons "Wound Management of the Diabetic Foot and Wound Healing" conference in New Orleans, Sept. 10-13. Nomir Medical Technologies makes optical energy technologies for anti-infective medical applications.

• OSI Systems (Hawthorne, California) said that its Spacelabs Healthcare division has launched the lance, a new design in ultra-lightweight patient monitors. The lance monitor is designed for applications requiring a compact, ultra-lightweight high-performance monitor in a streamlined form. The slim widescreen display and touch screen menu enhance visibility, ease of operation and informed decision-making, while the long battery life permits extended mobile operation. OSI Systems makes security and inspection systems, medical monitoring and anesthesia products, and optoelectronic devices and value-added subsystems.

• ProSolv CardioVascular (Indianapolis) reported the release of ProSolv CardioVascular 4.0. This new software release features ProSolv as a web-based application for full viewing and reporting capabilities using web communication protocols, secured via SSL, in addition to a web URL single-click application download and installation for easier deployment of the application. Other enhancements include new advanced clinical tools to further aid the diagnostic process, and the full integration to Fujifilm Medical Systems' Synapse picture archiving and ommunications system. ProSolv CardioVascular, a Fujifilm company, makes information management solutions for the clinical analysis and management of digital medical images for cardiology.

• Roche Applied Science (Penzberg, Germany) reported the introduction of the MagNA Pure LC 2.0 system. The company says it now meets all requirements for a modern nucleic acid purification system. The system provides isolation of pure nucleic acids from various sample materials is crucial for sensitive molecular analysis by PCR, RT-PCR, sequencing and arrays. This fully automated system is based on the magnetic bead technology and is designed to automate nucleic acid purification and PCR setup in the medium to high throughput range, flexibly processing one to 32 samples at a time. The duration to purify a full batch of 32 samples is 52 to 180 minutes, depending on the application. Roche is a research-focused healthcare group in the fields of pharmaceuticals and diagnostics.