Musculoskeletal News Roundup 21-Jul-11
BY LAUREN UZDIENSKI, JULY 21, 2011
Earnings
Bacterin announced preliminary 2Q:11 revenues of $7.5 million, which represents a 134% increase over 2Q:10 and 25% over 1Q:11. The company attributed the sales increases to "continued growth in the number of domestic hospitals and new international accounts using Bacterin products, as driven by the company's expanding direct and outside sales force."
Johnson & Johnson reported 2Q:11 revenues of $16.2 billion, up 3% over the year-ago period and beating estimates by $362.9 million. Medical device sales increased by 1%, with the company naming DePuy's sports medicine business as one of its drivers of revenue growth. DePuy recorded $1.5 billion in sales, up 1% over the year-ago period, with hip down 3%, knee down 4% and spine flat. Growth rates exclude the effects of currency. Adjusted net earnings for the quarter were $3.5 billion, or $1.28 per share, up 5% and beating estimates by $0.04.
Stryker reported 2Q:11 revenues of $2.1 billion, 12% over the year-ago period and beating estimates by $37.7 million. Recon sales increased by 2% to $916.3 million, with hip up 4%, knee down 1% and trauma and extremity up 4%. Spine sales increased by 4% to $169.0 million. Growth rates exclude the effects of currency. Adjusted net earnings were $319.0 million, or $0.90 per share, up 10% over the year-ago period and in line with estimates.
Funding
Ascension Orthopedics raised $18.6 million of a planned $20.4 million round of funding. Further information about this round is not available, but prior investors include Frazier Healthcare Ventures. Ascension manufactures extremity devices from its PyroCarbon technology.
Stanmore received GBP 4.0 million ($6.5 million) in funding from Imperial Innovations Group. The proceeds will be used to build a U.S. sales force for their Juvenile Tumour System, a non-invasive, extendible distal femoral replacement for use in pediatric orthopedic oncology surgery, and support the development of new technologies.
Regulatory
Alphatec Spine announced the Japanese launch of its Illico SE Posterior Fixation Percutaneous Screw System for minimally invasive surgery. The company recently received Shonin, or Japanese regulatory approval, and will launch the system through its wholly owned subsidiary, Alphatec Pacific, and their respective distributors.
Carticept Medical received 510(k) clearance to market its Navigator Delivery System, a computer-controlled drug delivery system designed to automate preparation and delivery of pain medications for joint pain.
Product Introduction and Update
DJO Global launched the Turon Modular Shoulder System, which the company describes as the first total shoulder system to incorporate their proprietary IMIN (Intrinsic Modular Indexable Neck) technology, which enables the surgeon to dial in the humeral neck shaft angle position. This technology eliminates the need for adjunctive screw fixation and "complex jigs and back table fixtures."
GraMedica announced the limited release of the Osteo-Wedge Open Wedge Bone Locking System intended to treat moderate to severe bunions. A full rollout is expected to be completed by the end of 2011.
IlluminOss Medical announced the first use of its product in the repair and stabilization of a distal radius fracture. The press release states that the patient had been treated previously with open surgical fixation and a locking plate, though the plate failed on account of screw pull-out from osteoporotic bone. The company says their photodynamic fracture repair technique, which uses a balloon placed inside a fracture space and filled with a monomer hardened by a special light source, enabled stabilization of the fractured radius and reinforcement for the locking screws and plate.
Intellectual Property
Kuros Biosurgery received Notice of Allowance for U.S. patent 11/679,807, which the company says "acknowledges that Kuros has been first in showing that parathyroid hormone when applied locally in a matrix to a bone defect has the ability to improve bone healing."
Clinical
Ellipse Technologies announced the results of preliminary clinical data associated with theri MAGEC1 System, which enables noninvasive, remote lengthening of the spine with an implanted rod. The company said that their results suggest that children with early onset scoliosis "can be treated safely and effectively without the conventional protocol of repeated surgeries." The system is available in Europe.
Recognition
U.S. News and World Report released its annual list of the best hospitals in orthopedics. Hospital for Special Surgery led the list, followed by the Mayo Clinic, Massachusetts General Hospital, Cleveland Clinic and Johns Hopkins. The top-ranked hospitals are unchanged from 2010.
Appointments
Benvenue Medical appointed Paul Byerley Vice President of Sales. He joined Benvenue from Baxter Healthcare, where he was Vice President of Sales, Orthobiologics. Additionally, Ben Murdock was appointed Senior Director of Marketing after serving in marketing, sales and sales management positions for DFine and Kyphon.
