• AdvanDx (Woburn, Massachusetts) said that the Lee Memorial Health System has implemented AdvanDx’s molecular-based PNA FISH tests that provide rapid identification of bloodstream pathogens in hours instead of days, enabling labs to quickly report critical information to physicians and pharmacists to ensure optimal therapy and help reduce death rates for patients afflicted with bloodstream infections. Every year, 350,000 patients acquire bloodstream infections in the U.S. resulting in more than 90,000 deaths and significant costs to the healthcare system. Conventional diagnostics methods can take several days and often causes physicians to administer broad antibiotic or antifungal coverage that are potentially ineffective, toxic, expensive or even unnecessary. Ineffective and inappropriate therapy contributes to increased mortality, morbidity, length-of-stay, overall hospital costs and in the long run to increased antibiotic resistance. AdvanDx makes molecular diagnostic products that identify infectious pathogens.

• DJO (San Diego) said that it has received FDA approval for a supplement to the company’s existing pre-market approval (PMA). The PMA supplement covers several new product features that are built into the control modules for its combined magnetic field (CMF) OL1000 and SpinaLogic bone growth stimulation product lines. The new product features enhance patients’ ease of use. The CMF OL1000 and SpinaLogic devices are the only bone growth stimulation devices using CMF technology. CMF is the only waveform clinically proven to stimulate bone growth from a simple 30 minute per day treatment with FDA-indicated use in both long bone and primary lumbar spine applications, the company said.