LensAR, Inc., the leading developer of next generation laser technology for cataract surgery and presbyopia, announced that the company has received 510(k) clearance from the FDA for use of the LensAR Laser System for anterior capsulotomy during cataract surgery.

The LensAR Laser System integrates propriety ocular measurement and 3D laser scanning technologies with an advanced tissue cutting laser. The clinical data from the APEC Hospital Mexico City showed the laser capsulotomies were significantly more precise than manual capsulorhexis in the intended vs. achieved diameter and in circularity.

“The capsulotomy is arguably the most critical and precise step in cataract surgery and the ability to improve its sizing, centration, and consistency through automation is an important and exciting advance,” stated Dr. David F. Chang, LensAR Medical Monitor, who has personally used the LensAR Laser System in Mexico.

Dr. Louis D. “Skip” Nichamin, Medical Advisory Board member, who also has had experience using the system directly, commented, “The application of femtosecond technology to cataract surgery is the most exciting development in ophthalmic surgery in decades. The increased precision of the LensAR technology can help in the improvement of surgical outcomes while assisting experienced and inexperienced surgeons achieve more consistent results.”

“This is a critical milestone for the company. Our first cleared indication of what we believe will be many to come in this exciting new field of laser cataract surgery,” said Randy Frey, founder and chief executive officer of LensAR.

About LensAR, Inc.

LensAR, Inc. is the leading developer of next generation laser technology for cataract surgery and presbyopia. The LensAR Laser System, which integrates an advanced ultra short pulse laser with propriety ocular measurement and laser scanning technologies, is being designed to allow physicians to perform several of the steps in cataract surgery (capsulotomy, lens fragmentation, precise astigmatic corrections and unique clear corneal incisions) in a single laser procedure. In addition to advancing its laser technology in the area of cataract surgery, the company is also developing the LensAR Laser System for the treatment of presbyopia.

The LensAR Laser System is cleared by the FDA for anterior capsulotomy. For other indications it is an investigational device limited by United States law to investigational use only.

Source: LensAR, Inc

Optovue, a pioneer in fourier/spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT), has announced that the new iVue compact SD-OCT has received FDA 510(k) clearance on April 29, 2010.

“The iVue compact SD-OCT was officially launched outside the United States in January of this year, and we have seen very high demand – as expected – in the first quarter,” stated Paul Kealey, Vice President of Marketing for Optovue. “This regulatory clearance for the US market allows us to offer the benefits of advanced OCT imaging to more segments within eye care, where the economic feasibility of the larger systems simply did not work. The iVue begins the next phase of the OCT revolution in the US that started with the RTVue launch in 2006.”

The iVue compact SD-OCT system is delivered on a standard slit lamp style base and is comprised of a small scanning head (4.5 lbs / 2.2 kg), a control module, laptop PC and foot switch. The system can be mounted to a small table and may have other mounting options in the near future for other eye care environments.

About RTVue and iVue

RTVue was the first FDA cleared Fourier domain (also known as spectral domain) OCT launched in the United States, and also the first OCT cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for both corneal and retinal imaging. The iVue is the compact fourier-domain version of the RTVue OCT, offering the same scanning speed and resolution as the larger system, that includes scanning and reports for retina, retina nerve fiber and cornea assessment by the clinician.

About Optovue

Optovue Incorporated is a privately-held ophthalmic device company dedicated to working with eye care professionals and clinical researchers to lead the commercialization of new imaging modalities that improve diagnosis and therapy of ocular disease. Optovue has achieved widespread market success through a combination of unique data analysis design, a reputation for excellent customer service, and rapid innovation of its technology in response to physician feedback. The company is headquartered in Fremont, CA, with operations in Carlsbad, CA and European operations in Heidelberg, Germany.

Source: Optovue

Terumo Medical Corporation, a U.S.-based subsidiary of Terumo Corporation, has announced it has received an investigational device exemption (IDE) conditional approval from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) for its Occlusive/Stenotic Peripheral Artery Revascularization Study (OSPREY) in the U.S., which will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the MISAGO™ Self-expanding Stent System for use in the superficial femoral artery (SFA). This marks the company’s first U.S. clinical trial for a premarket approval (PMA) device. A unique feature of the clinical trial is that it will simultaneously enroll patients in the U.S. and Japan. Referred to as “Medical Device Collaborative Consultation and Review of Premarketing Applications” under the larger “Harmonization by Doing” (HBD) initiative, Terumo’s trial was selected as one of two projects to pilot this approach, which is intended to shorten the gap between product approvals in these two significant world healthcare markets.

HBD is an international effort to develop global clinical trials and address regulatory barriers that may be impediments to timely device approvals. This process is a cooperative effort to move both Japan and the U.S. toward international regulatory harmonization. The HBD initiative is a pilot project launched in December 2003 that seeks regulatory convergence between FDA and MHLW-PMDA (Japan’s regulatory bodies). The learning obtained in the “proof of concept” trials will assist both regulatory bodies in streamlining the clinical trial process for faster approvals in both countries, as well as promote the idea of global trials for purposes of collecting better data. In this pilot HBD approach, the products will be submitted for review and approval at the same time.

“I believe this approach to shorten the time for new product approvals between the U.S. and Japan is critical and exciting,” said Takao Ohki, MD, Chairman and Professor, Department of Surgery, Jikei University School of Medicine, Division of Vascular Surgery, and the global principal investigator of the OSPREY trial. “This innovative movement could dramatically solve the current device lag issue between our countries.”

In the U.S., OSPREY is a single-arm, multi-center, non-randomized prospective clinical trial for the treatment of atherosclerotic stenoses and occlusions of the SFA. In Japan, there are two arms of the study, 50 patients receiving the MISAGO Stent and 50 patients receiving percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA).

The primary endpoints of the U.S. study are:

• Primary stent patency rate at one year as confirmed by duplex ultrasound or angiography.
• Freedom from major adverse events within 30 days of the procedure, which would result in target lesion revascularization, amputation of the treated limb or death.

The study will include up to 350 patients, a maximum of 250 patients in up to 30 centers in the U.S. and 100 patients in Japan. There have already been six patients enrolled in Japan, which received regulatory approval to begin the trial last year. The first U.S. enrollments are expected in June 2010. The U.S. principal investigator is J. Fritz Angle, MD, Associate Professor of Radiology, University of Virginia.

“Peripheral vascular disease management continues to be a major clinical problem,” said Dr. Angle. “We need better tools to improve revascularization of femoral-popliteal vessels. I applaud Terumo’s efforts to advance this field.”

The MISAGO Self-expanding Stent consists of a nitinol stent pre-mounted on the distal portion of a rapid-exchange delivery catheter system. The stent has three radiopaque markers located on each end of the stent to help ensure accurate placement in the lesion. The stent is currently available for sale in Europe.

“We are eager to move forward with the first harmonized clinical trial in the U.S. and Japan,” said Juichi (Jim) Takeuchi, President and CEO, Terumo Medical Corporation. “We are not only proud of the MISAGO Stent, but also of Terumo’s selection to participate in this precedent-setting international collaborative effort between regulators, industry, clinical researchers, patients, and academia. We look forward to initiating our first PMA clinical trial in the United States and to bringing innovative new interventional technology to market to improve patients’ quality of life.”

Source:
Robert Murphy
The Storch Murphy Group

Covidien (NYSE: COV), a leading global provider of healthcare products and recognized innovator in mechanical ventilation, announced 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to expand the Puritan Bennett™ 840 ventilator’s minimum delivered tidal volume down to 2 mL. This feature will enable the Puritan Bennett 840 ventilator to provide ventilatory support for neonates weighing as little as 300 grams.

The Puritan Bennett 840 ventilator delivers a comprehensive, user-friendly solution offering ventilation for a broad range of patients and acuity levels, from neonates to adults. Multiple therapies of ventilation help clinicians respond with the most appropriate ventilation strategy, including a neonatal continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) mode, enabling noninvasive ventilation in neonates.

The ability to deliver a minimum tidal volume of 2mL will enable clinicians to safely ventilate the smallest and most critically ill neonatal patients with the Puritan Bennett 840 ventilator. This feature will complement recent enhancements to the Puritan Bennett™ 840 NeoMode™ software, including neonatal CPAP mode and the ability to increase the fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO2) by 20% for up to two minutes during suctioning. An increased FiO2 is necessary to manage adequate oxygenation in patients who are critically ill.

“This FDA 510(k) clearance allows Covidien to make clinicians aware that one device, the Puritan Bennett 840 ventilator, can be used on all patients from newborn to adults,” said Douglas Hansell, M.D., M.P.H., Chief Medical Officer and Vice President, Respiratory and Monitoring Solutions, Covidien. “Now patients, from the smallest neonates in the NICU through adults in the ICU, can receive the clinical benefits provided by the Puritan Bennett 840 ventilator.”

Source
Covidien