Los Angeles, California – MedTech Innovator, the medtech industry’s nonprofit global competition and accelerator, announced a call for emerging companies to apply to the 2017 competition by the Feb. 28, 2017 deadline. MedTech Innovator will award more than $500,000 in cash prizes and does not require equity from participating companies.

Early to mid-stage medical device, diagnostic, and digital health companies that address at least one of the following key themes are eligible to apply:

• Chronic disease management
• Cognitive devices and platforms
• Consumer healthcare
• Healthcare efficiency and cost reduction
• Infectious disease management
• Patient safety and satisfaction
• Precision and personalized medicine
• Population health
• Next-gen surgical
• Technology-enabled services

Applications are reviewed by more than 50 leading companies, including manufacturers, providers, and investors such as Johnson & Johnson, RCT Ventures, BD, Baxter, Abbott, Sofinnova Partners, Medtronic, Windham Venture Partners, Edwards Lifesciences, and Aphelion Capital. The top 100 companies move on compete in 10 regional Pitch Events in the United States and Europe throughout March and April. Pitch Event winners progress to the opportunity to be selected for the Showcase, Accelerator and three competitions: the first is April 26, 2017, at the MedTech Strategist Innovation Summit in Dublin, Ireland; the second is June 2, 2017, at the Wilson Sonsini Medical Device Conference in San Francisco, California; and finally, the Showcase and Finals at AdvaMed 2017 in San Jose, California, Sept. 25-27, 2017.

MedTech Innovator is the largest platform of its kind, providing participants with broad exposure and mentorship from the leading players in the medtech industry. The competition includes several rounds:

•  MedTech Innovator 100– 100 companies are invited to compete at regional Pitch Events, gain access to online accelerator resources, and receive complimentary registration to the AdvaMed Accel Leadership Seminar on day one of AdvaMed 2017.
• MedTech Innovator Showcase – 50 companies are additionally awarded a slot in the MedTech Innovator Showcase at AdvaMed 2017 and full access registration to the conference.
• MedTech Innovator Accelerator – 20 companies are selected to the industry’s leading accelerator program as the class of 2017, including four months of mentoring, exclusive participation in the three-day MedTech Innovator Accelerator Kick-Off in San Francisco, and a chance to compete onstage for cash prizes.

“MedTech Innovator is an exemplary showcase of the emerging talent that the medical technology industry has to offer and an opportunity to accelerate the development of life-changing and life-enhancing technologies,” MedTech Innovator CEO Paul Grand says. “This competition and accelerator presents participants a host of opportunities to make connections with investors and partners, gain industry know-how and increase exposure, and I encourage medical technology startups to apply.”

The MedTech Innovator Showcase and MedTech Innovator 2017 Competition Finals are held in partnership with  AdvaMed Accel and the AdvaMed annual conference. Four finalists are selected to compete on the plenary stage, and the audience votes in real time for the MedTech Innovator 2017 Grand Prize Winner.

“The MedTech Innovator Accelerator and Competition complements AdvaMed Accel’s mission to support the strategic development and fundraising efforts of these innovative small companies,” AdvaMed Accel Executive Director Ashley Wittorf said. “We are proud to continue this partnership with MedTech Innovator and look forward to working with participating companies throughout 2017.”

About MedTech Innovator
MedTech Innovator is the industry’s nonprofit global competition and accelerator for medical device, digital health and diagnostic companies. Our mission is to improve the lives of patients by accelerating the growth of companies that are transforming the healthcare system. MedTech Innovator 2017 features 100 companies that address one or more of the transformative themes identified in an annual survey of leading manufacturers and providers.

Source: MedTech Innovator

Cleveland, Ohio – “We focus on neglected areas of pediatric needs and we are the only company that does this,” Mark C. Throdahl, president of CEO of OrthoPediatrics tells a group of journalists that visited Northeast Indiana to see what’s new in medical device design and manufacturing. While the company doesn’t manufacture their products – that is all done through contract manufacturers – the rapid pace of product development keeps the 62 employees in Warsaw, Indiana, very busy. Outside of corporate, the company has 94 sales reps and 24 international distributors selling its rapidly growing line of surgical systems, designed only for children. But the company is still small, considered a late-stage startup that is not yet profitable, but it boasts a growth rate of 32% in the past 5 years with 20% of of sales outside the U.S.

Since 2006, OrthoPediatrics has developed and received regulatory clearance for 18 surgical systems for trauma, long bone deformity and correction, scoliosis, and sports medicine. One example in sports medicine is repairing anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) damage in children as young as 8, something that was previously not possible because the procedure could violate children’s growth plates.

OrthoPediatrics - Leading Innovation in Pediatric Orthopedics from OrthoPediatrics on Vimeo.

“So one key thing our company did early on is to help with research and design, was obtaining exclusive rights to the Cleveland Museum of Natural History’s Hamann-Todd Human Osteological Collection, the world’s largest documented collection of modern human skeletal remains,” Throdahl says. “Since then we have scanned them into a database in order to have a deep understanding of the curvature of children’s bones, which are up to 30% more curved than adults.”

Having this insight allows design engineers to develop devices specific for children and not just scaled-down versions of adult implants, as often the company is developing a product for a kid-only condition, so adult equivalents don’t even exist. Another area designers need to consider is the material for the implant, which are often produced in stainless steel versus titanium used for adult implants – mainly because often the implants in children need removed. And, unlike titanium that promotes adherence to bones, stainless doesn’t encourage this as much so removal is easier and doesn’t risk violating the vascular structure of young bones developing.

OrthoPediatrics knows they service a neglected area of specialty products and have grown the company by staying in tune with pediatric surgeons around the country, listening to what challenges they face and what products they need. It appears to be working as OrthoPediatrics is building an enduring company that helps the cause of children around the world and recycles every sales dollar into more research for to keep improving the lives of kids.

Learn more about Northeast Indiana medical device manufacturing and companies located there such as Nextremity Solutions, Banner Medical, and Precision Medical Technologies.

Abbott Park, Illinois – Abbott officials announced U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for magnetic resonance (MR)-conditional labeling for both the Assurity MRI pacemaker and the Tendril MRI pacing lead. Patients implanted with these low-voltage devices will have the ability to undergo full body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, if required. With the approval, the Assurity MRI pacemaker is now the world's smallest, longest-lasting wireless MRI-compatible pacemaker.

The Assurity MRI pacemaker also offers wireless remote monitoring, providing physicians secure access to their patients' diagnostic data and daily device measurements and reducing the need for in-office visits. Remote monitoring of cardiac patients has become a best practice over the past decade, and studies have continued to prove its positive impact on patient outcomes and the reduction of health care costs. In 2015, the Heart Rhythm Society made wireless remote monitoring the standard of care in its guidelines.

Pacemakers that allow patients to undergo MRI scans, such as the Assurity MRI pacemaker, have become an important advancement for patients who may need an MRI in the future but who do not want to risk damage to their implant. During an MRI scan, the Assurity MRI pacemaker works with Abbott's MRI Activator handheld device to trigger pre-programmed MRI settings appropriately tailored to individual patients. This unique technology can help eliminate the effort, time and patient inconvenience commonly associated with conventional pre- and post-scan pacemaker reprogramming.

“A long-lasting and small wireless pacemaker that allows patients to undergo MRI scans is an important step forward in growing our available treatment options for patients,” says David Sandler, M.D., director of electrophysiology at the Oklahoma Heart Institute in Tulsa, Oklahoma. “The ability to choose a device to best address a patient's cardiac condition no longer has a tradeoff with MRI compatibility. It's the best of both worlds.”

Abbott has continued to build its portfolio of MRI-labeled products, and continues to work with regulatory agencies around the world to secure approval for MR-conditional labeling for many of its most commonly implanted pacemakers, implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) and cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) devices.

“Our proven Tendril MRI pacing lead which has been implanted in more than 200,000 patients worldwide along with the latest approved MR-conditional labeling for our Assurity MRI pacemaker, will help provide patients access to diagnostic procedures while delivering the product performance physicians need to provide the best possible care to their patients,” says Avi Fischer, M.D., medical director for Abbott's Cardiac Rhythm Management business.

About pacemakers
A pacemaker is a small, low-voltage implantable device that sends electrical pulses to the heart if the heart is beating too slowly. More than 4 million people worldwide have an implanted pacemaker or other cardiac rhythm management device, and an additional 700,000 patients receive the devices each year.

A pacemaker monitors the heart's rate (how fast or slow it beats) and rhythm (the pattern in which it beats), and it provides electrical stimulation when the heart beats too slowly. Pacemakers can reduce symptoms of dizziness and fatigue when brought on by a slow heart rhythm, helping patients enjoy a better quality of life.

A lead is a thin insulated wire that is placed through the veins and into the heart as part of a pacemaker implantation procedure. The tip of the lead is attached to the heart tissue, and the other end connects to the pacemaker. The lead carries electrical impulses from the pacemaker to the heart and transmits information from the heart back to the implanted device.

Some pacemakers are referred to as MR-conditional or MRI ready. This means that they are designed to allow you to safely undergo an MRI scan under certain conditions. By having a pacemaker implanted that allows MRI scans, you will have access to what many physicians consider their preferred diagnostic tool. MRI scans are considered the imaging modality that offers the most information to medical professionals when making a patient diagnosis because of the very detailed images it provides, combined with the low risk of radiation.

About Abbott's Cardiac Rhythm Management (CRM) technologies
Abbott collaborates with world-renowned electrophysiologists, clinicians and hospital administrators to develop safe and cost-effective treatment solutions for patients in need of advanced CRM devices.

About Abbott
At Abbott, we're committed to helping people live their best possible life through the power of health. For more than 125 years, we've brought new products and technologies to the world -- in nutrition, diagnostics, medical devices and branded generic pharmaceuticals -- that create more possibilities for more people at all stages of life. Today, 94,000 of us are working to help people live not just longer, but better, in the more than 150 countries we serve.

Source: Abbott

Mason, Ohio – Officials from Makino Inc. announce its merger with EDM consumables supplier Global EDM Supplies. The merger is expected to expand the company’s SST Consumables business, providing customers with broader geographic reach, greater product diversity and increased accessibility to experienced technical services and support.

“We are very pleased to continue our growth in the consumables business through the merger of Global EDM Supplies,” says Don Lane, CEO of Makino Inc. “We look forward to better serving our customers through the addition of Global’s skilled and experienced personnel, geographic presence and product portfolio.”

Headquartered in Mason, Ohio, Global EDM Supplies is a leading supplier of top-quality EDM technologies and turnkey application solutions. Its EDM consumables catalogue includes more than 3,000 different EDM parts and supplies from leading manufacturers, including wire, filters, wear parts, resin, fluid and lubricants, and electrodes. Since its founding in 1995, Global EDM Supplies has built a reputation for its technical support and customer service across the United States with eight locations across the country.

“We are excited about the prospects for expanding Global’s reach afforded by our merger with Makino,” says Tom Kucharski, president of Global EDM Inc. “Our unmatched technical and personal service will be further enhanced by the resources of Makino and SST”.

The integration of Global EDM Supplies into SST, is expected to be completed within the first quarter of 2017. With its robust network of engineers, Global and SST are committed to offering fast local support with complete machine repair and maintenance programs. SST and Global support and services are to continue to operate uninterrupted across all regions and locations.

About Makino
A world leader in advanced CNC machining centers, Makino is committed to providing high-performance, leading-edge machining technologies and innovative engineered process solutions that enable manufacturers to focus on making what matters. Makino offers a wide range of high-precision metal cutting and EDM machinery, including horizontal machining centers, vertical machining centers, 5-axis machining centers, graphite machining centers, and wire and Ram EDMs. Makino’s flexible automation solutions provide reduced labor costs and increased throughput in a variety of production volumes and designs. Makino’s engineering services offers industry-leading expertise for even the most challenging applications across all industries.

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Source: Makino