• CDO Technologies(Dayton, Ohio), an integrator of radio frequency (RF) identification solutions, reported the availability of Atlas, a real-time locating system (RTLS) designed to improve asset utilization, reduce operating and leasing costs, and improve employee throughput and customer service in healthcare, consumer products and transportation. Atlas is CDO Technologies’ first product offering based on RF Code’s TAVIS unified monitoring platform. The solution also will incorporate RF Code’s Mantis line of active RFID tags and readers, reflecting the partnership announced by the companies in August 2004. Atlas, a device-agnostic solution, also is capable of supporting previous investment in 2-D and 3-D barcodes, smart cards, contact memory devices and biometrics, “minimizing client risk and expense while accelerating return on investment,” according to CDO. Atlas automatically records real-time data about items as they move through the manufacturing and distribution process.

• iCAD (Nashua, New Hampshire), a provider of computer-aided detection (CAD) for the early identification of cancer, reported submitting a 510(k) application with the FDA for marketing its first product for use in the detection of lung cancer. As an image processing application intended to support computed tomography (CT) review workstation software, iCAD’s lung cancer detection product is designed to make the medical review of lungs in CT scans more productive. The solution identifies roughly spherical objects in the lung that meet radiologist-specified size, shape and brightness criteria, enabling healthcare professionals to improve workflow by spending more time reviewing potential areas of lung cancer concern. Distribution agreements for iCAD’s lung cancer detection products already are in place with TeraRecon (San Mateo, California) and Viatronix (Stony Brook, New York), both to begin product marketing following FDA clearance and product development and release plans are completed. ICAD’s submission was made to Underwriters Laboratories under the FDA Accredited Persons Program.

• Medtronic Sofamor Danek (Memphis, Tennessee) reported the first enrollments in its PRESTIGE LP Cervical Disc clinical trial, saying it is its third artificial cervical disc trial designed to explore new technologies for the treatment of degenerative back disease. Having completed enrollment early last fall on both the Bryan Artificial Cervical Disc System and Prestige ST Cervical Disc investigational trials, Medtronic said it intends to advance cervical artificial disc technologies with the investigational device exemption (IDE) trial of the Prestige LP Cervical Disc. About 25 investigational sites will enroll a 275 patients. The Prestige LP Cervical Disc is made from a titanium ceramic composite material shown to have enhanced wear characteristics and improved imaging properties in laboratory testing. It incorporates two articulating components (ball on top and trough on the bottom) attached to the vertebral bodies. The ball and trough is designed to provide for replication of normal physiological motion. Dual stabilization rails and a plasma spray coating on each component are intended to help encourage biological fixation and long-term stability. The device is available in a variety of sizes to match patient anatomy. The Prestige is designed to maintain motion and flexibility while replacing a diseased disc removed from a patient’s cervical (neck) area. The trial is being conducted to assess the safety and effectiveness of the Prestioge in the treatment of symptomatic nerve root and/or spinal cord compression associated with degenerative disc disease. Each patient enrolled will receive the Prestige LP Cervical Disc. Trial patients must be at least 18 years old, diagnosed with cervical degenerative disc disease, have not responded to non-operative treatment for a period of six months and meet various conditions documented by computed tomography, MRI, or X-rays. Medtronic Sofamor Danek bills itself as “the global leader in today’s spine market.”