Queensland University Of Technology researchers are developing a device they call a "smarthroscope," designed to be a more sensitive alternative to an arthroscope. Professor Kunle Oloyede, who received a grant from the National Health and Medical Research Council to develop... more
Medtronic announced plans yesterday to bring spine and orthopedic therapies to the Chinese market through a joint venture with Shandong Weigao Group Medical Polymer Company Limited. Under the joint venture agreement, the companies will sell spine and orthopedic products, including... more
Earnings Medtronic reported FQ2:08 revenue of $3.12 billion, beating estimates by $0.02 million and representing a 2% increase over the year-ago period. Net earnings for FQ2:08 were $666.0 million, or $0.58 per diluted share, beating estimates by $0.02 but down... more
At the confluence of war and improved medical care sit the 130 U.S. veterans of the current war in Iraq who have had an arm amputated. Advances in battlefield medical care have allowed soldiers who would have died in combat... more
CMS released its final rule for the FY2008 Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS). As we noted when the draft rule was announced in April, ortho payments will mostly increase next year. The rule also confirms that CMS will implement new... more
Earnings Biologics LifeCell reported 4Q:06 product revenues of $39.3 million, an increase of 45% over $27.0 million in 4Q:05, but missed analysts' estimates of $39.5 million. The growth was attributed to increased demand for the Company's AlloDerm® Regenerative Tissue Matrix.... more
Earnings Dental: Lifecore Biomedical announced that 1Q:07 net sales increased 12% to $15 million. Net income for the quarter was $1.1 million, representing a year-over-year increase of 9%. The Company was in-line with analysts' estimates and reported earnings of $0.08... more
Earnings Update: Tutogen Medical, Inc. provided an update on its 4Q:06 projected revenues which are estimated at ~$10.8 million, representing a 36% increase over the comparable quarter of 2005. Revenues for the fiscal year will be ~$38 million, an increase... more
Appointment: Orthovita, Inc. has appointed Albert J. Pavucek, Jr. Vice President Corporate Controller. Mr. Pavucek was with PDI, Inc. serving as Vice President, Finance and Operations. Awards & Recognition: Smith & Nephew plc announced that two of its products, the... more
Appointment: Ranier Technology Limited has appointed John C. Moran to its Board of Directors. Previously, Mr. Moran was a President of Synthes Spine and a Director of Spine Solutions, Inc. Active Implants Corporation (AIC) has hired Richard Treharne, PhD. as... more
Earnings: Biologics: Tutogen reported 3Q:06 sales of $10 million and a net loss of $1.1 million, or $0.07 per fully diluted share compared to the same quarter last year. The Company would have experienced breakeven results without ~$1.1 million in... more
Yesterday Synthes reported consolidated 1H:06 financials with sales of $1.2 billion, representing an increase of 14% (15% constant currency). Consolidated sales for 1H:06 in Europe, Asia Pacific, North America and elsewhere increased by 16.8%, 16.6%, 14.7% and 10.5%, respectively. For... more
This morning Orthofix International, NV (NasdaqGS: OFIX) announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire independent spinal implant developer Blackstone Medical, Inc. for $333 million in cash. Blackstone revenues were $22mm in 2Q:06 and EBIT was approximately $2mm. Trailing... more
Earnings Results: Biologics: Anika Therapeutics announced 2Q:06 net sales increased 11% to $7.1 million. Product revenues grew 74% while licensing, milestone and contract revenue was down 77%. The large product sales growth was partially driven by higher demand for OrthoVisc®;... more
This past weekend we attended the 22nd Annual Summer Meeting of the American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society in La Jolla (AOFAS). The conference ran from July 14-16, 2006 at the Hilton Torrey Pines Hotel and there were approximately 400... more
This morning Orthofix announced the appointment of Michael M. Finegan as Vice President of Corporate Development and head of the Company's new Corporate Development Group. His duties will include identifying external opportunities for the company to increase its revenues and... more
Indonesia has seen a lot of seismic activity in the past few months. The latest was a 6.3 earthquake that hit the island of Java, creating an enormous medical emergency. Thus far, the quake has killed 5,700 people and over... more
The first group of orthopedic companies reported their 1Q:06 this week and took in $5.3 billion so far. The total aggregated revenues for the quarter were up by 7% from $4.9 billion in 1Q:05. The industry netted $637.8 million, a... more
Our regular readers will remember that a few months ago, Zimmer and HCA had an unusually public fight. To briefly review, HCA entered into volume discount contracts with Zimmer, Stryker and DePuy. At year end, the implant companies reported HCA... more
Our current forecast for the orthopedic industry projects continued long term growth of 15%. For 2006, we expect growth to be slightly below this trend, at 12%. Despite continued strength in other segments of the industry, hip and knee reconstruction... more
With the AAOS in Chicago fast approaching, we have put together a list of "Hot Sessions" to check out. Please click on the link at the bottom to view the entire list. Adult Reconstruction, Hip and KneeSunday, March 26, 2006... more
Smith & Nephew reported results for 4Q05 and FY2005, and they were strong particularly within their Orthopedics segment. For the quarter, they saw 15% growth (ex F/X) in orthopedic sales to $1,267 million, which broke down as follows: *Knees: +12%... more
It has been a busy week for many CEOs and CFOs in the orthopedic device sector. In the past two weeks orthopedic companies reported 3Q:05 sales of $4.7 billion which was a 12% increase over the 3Q:04. Net earnings for... more
This morning, Orthofix International N.V. (NASDAQ: OFIX) announced that Alan W. Milinazzo, 45, has joined the Company as its Chief Operating Officer (COO). Milinazzo joins Orthofix as an experienced hand in the medical device field with decades of experience, most... more
This week, we decided to post the Orthopedic News Roundup for Thursday, instead of Friday due to the upcoming holiday. Clearly the biggest headline this week is the announcement of a take-over bid by Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation ("MTF") for Osteotech... more
This morning Orthofix announced that Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) approved the Company's request to modify its coding mechanisms to include specific coding for hospital procedures utilizing external fixation devices. As of October of this year, facilities will... more
Smith and Nephew's large joint recon business is a muscular enterprise. In its preview of the first half, SNN's management reported that orthopedic revenues are expected to rise 15% year-over-year (YOY), with knees leading the way at a 22% growth... more
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