IRVINE, Calif.–(BUSINESS
WIRE)–Ellipse Technologies, Inc. (“Ellipse”) announced today that the
first implantations of the PRECICE Limb Lengthening device in the United
States were successfully performed in December by Dr. Dror Paley, Director of
the Paley Advanced Limb Lengthening Institute, West Palm Beach, Florida. Limb
lengthening procedures are used to treat a number of conditions, including
restoration of length to limbs shortened by congenital abnormalities, major
fractures, and other medical problems, such as shortening due to radical cancer
surgery.
The PRECICE Remote Control Limb Lengthening System was
co-developed by Ellipse and scientific advisors Stuart A. Green, M.D., Clinical
Professor of Orthopedic Surgery, University of California, Irvine, and Shawn C.
Standard, M.D., Head of Pediatric Orthopedics, International Center for Limb
Lengthening, Baltimore, Maryland. Ellipse continues to develop new applications
for the PRECICE technology for orthopedic management of complex fractures and
residual fracture deformities and trauma.
“The PRECICE is the first FDA cleared implantable limb
lengthening device that offers prescribed rate controlled limb lengthening and
has the ability to reverse direction,” said Dr. Paley. “This is such a
significant advance that it represents the dawn of a new era in Orthopedics. I
am honored to be the first US
surgeon to implant this technology.”
PRECICETM Remote Control Limb Lengthening System
The initial PRECICE devices can be used in lower extremity
lengthening procedures of the femur and tibia. Rather than using adjustable
external fixation systems, which are attached to the limb through long-term
openings in the skin, the PRECICE REMOTE CONTROL TECHNOLOGY provides an
internal implant adjusted to lengthen bones via non-invasive methods from
outside the body. Ellipse and its scientific advisors believe the PRECICE
devices will not only provide a less-invasive approach to these procedures but
also significantly reduce the potential for complications (e.g., infections)
during the healing and recuperation period.
Commenting on these first US cases, Ed. Roschak, Ellipse
Chief Executive Officer said, “We are delighted with the initial outcome of
these first patients and look forward to a full U.S. and international launch of
the PRECICE Remote Control Limb Lengthening System in 2012.”
MAGECTM Remote Control Spinal Deformity System
Ellipse has also developed the MAGEC (MAGnetic Expansion Control)
Technology for minimally invasive, and ultimately non-invasive, orthopedic
deformity prevention and management. MAGEC Technology is a breakthrough medical
device technology capable of non-invasively adjusting implants within the human
body from outside the body via remote control. The adjustment of the device can
also be reversed. The first application for this technology is for the
treatment of spinal scoliosis in children.
With the MAGEC Technology, a single minimally invasive
surgical procedure is completed. Then, during a series of routine outpatient
visits, the physician will dynamically adjust the MAGEC Technology from outside
the body via the MAGEC Systems External Remote Controller (“ERC”), thus
eliminating the need for multiple highly invasive surgical procedures which are
required with currently marketed, conventional products.
Ellipse Technologies, Inc. is a privately-held medical
device company located in Irvine,
California. The Company is
focused on developing its implantable remote control technology platforms to
include innovative and state-of-the-art treatments for a broad spectrum of
spinal and orthopedic deformity applications, orthopedic trauma and fracture
management.
The MAGECTM System is not currently available for
distribution in U.S.
Posted by Sean Fenske, Editor-in-Chief, MDT