• I-Flow (Lake Forest, California) reported that preliminary results of an ON-Q prospective human study in colorectal surgery were presented at the annual meeting of the surgical infection society (SIS) in Toronto. This trial was designed to evaluate the effects of ON-Q PainBuster with ON-Q SilverSoaker antimicrobial catheter on surgical site infections. The early results of the ongoing study indicate a statistically significant reduction in the rate of surgical site infections and a statistically significant decrease in length of hospital stay for patients who received ON-Q versus those who received only narcotics, today’s standard of care for pain relief after surgery. I-Flow makes drug delivery systems and services.

• Medical Development International (MDI; St. Augustine, Florida) reported the launch of a new technological innovation: Empowered Analysis and Reporting Log (E.A.R.L.). E.A.R.L provides users with a visual overview of a patient’s health history and provides instant analysis of the patient’s diagnoses, the body parts that are affected by the treatment, the severity of the patient’s diagnoses, the associated appointment information, and the processed claims. MDI’s E.A.R.L is HIPAA-compliant and user-friendly. The information used in E.A.R.L is collected from many sources, including the medical codes that are found on the claims, the information collected at the time the appointment is scheduled, and the medical records associated with the appointment. Along with the visual image, the patient’s demographics, appointments, electronic medical records, and electronic claims are all attached to E.A.R.L so the user can easily access all of the historical medical information related to the patient. MDI’s IT professionals create a variety of programs that help customers to effectively communicate, collaborate, and create as a collective team.

• Nuance Communications (Providence, Rhode Island) reported the availability of PowerScribe workstation 4.8, a speech recognition reporting solution for radiology. PowerScribe 4.8 delivers enhanced functionality including new features based on two previously announced partnerships, Vocada Veriphy and Amirsys STATdx. In this new version of PowerScribe, Vocada’s Veriphy is embedded in PowerScribe creating a simplified user interface for radiologists. Veriphy is a communications solution for critical test result management that allows physicians to send critical messages to ordering clinicians instantly via pager, cell phone or email. Nuance Communications is a supplier of speech and imaging solutions.

• OmniGuide (Cambridge, Massachusetts) said that the initial patients have been treated in a clinical study evaluating patient quality of life and airway patency. The patient’s quality of life and airway patency will be measured during the time of treatment, and then at select post-operative intervals for four weeks, as well as during follow up treatments. The patients will be partially treated with the OmniGuide BeamPath system and then partially treated with the Pulse Dye Laser. Patients treated recently with the OmniGuide BeamPath CO₂ laser fiber that have previously been treated with the Pulse Dye Laser, report that the BeamPath fiber therapy provided a less frequent recurrence as well as less pain and a faster recovery. OmniGuide offers the BeamPath flexible fiber for CO₂ lasers. The CO₂ laser offers precision and a high degree of control over penetration into soft tissue. These attributes are critical in soft tissue procedures in otolaryngology, head and neck surgery, and pulmonology for which the potential damage to delicate untargeted structures and possible rupture of underlying blood vessels is a risk.

• Omni-Tract Surgical (St. Paul, Minnesota) reported the introduction of their Speed-Tract system. The system is made up of just two parts; a cam-activated coupler mounted on a sterile field post, along with a 360 degree adjustable cam-activated arm. Speed-Tract is designed to allow surgeons to set up their ring-type table mounted retractors, like Bookwalter and equivalent retractors. Speed-Tract is available through Omni-Tract Surgical and is designed to be compatible with most table-mounted ring retractor systems. Omni-Tract Surgical is a privately held medical device manufacturer.

• Sigma-Aldrich (St. Louis) reports the launch of the PhosDecor fluorescent phosphoprotein in-gel detection kit, a sensitive and selective tool for the identification of phosphorylated proteins. The PhosDecor kit includes a phosphate specific PhosDecor Stain, specially formulated buffers and a positive control to validate system performance. Interaction of the PhosDecor stain with protein-bound phosphate groups results in a selective chemiluminescence detectable with commonly available instruments. Some components are also available separately allowing for custom applications. Sigma-Aldrich is a life science and high technology company.