Teleflex’s European Market Clearance for Vascular Positioning System

Executives from Teleflex Inc., a leading global provider of medical devices for critical care and surgery, announce that its VasoNova Inc. subsidiary received CE certification from its notified body, the British Standards Institution (BSI), to market the company’s Arrow VPS system to the European Union.

The Arrow VPS system is the first to use a unique micro-Doppler ultrasound technology in combination with intravascular ECG and advanced algorithms to provide precise guidance to clinicians and enable correct placement of catheter tips the first time. Employing a simple user interface and blue bullseye symbol, the new technology is designed to avoid clinical consequences such as thrombosis, arterial puncture, and vessel wall damage. In the United States, this technology is already used to replace chest X-ray in adult patients when the steady blue bullseye is achieved, indicating proper placement, thereby reducing exposure to radiation and streamlining workflow. This provides benefits to the patient, the caregiver, and the health care system.

The Arrow VPS system is available now and consists of a portable, reusable console with proprietary vascular positioning system technology and a single-use stylet that is used with compatible central venous and peripherally-inserted central catheters.

Teleflex began shipping product in January 2011 to hospitals in the United States and will begin marketing in Europe immediately.

“This clearance puts us in a position to establish a new standard of care in catheter placement in Europe,” comments Paul Molloy, president, Vascular Division of Teleflex. “Our goal is to make zero complications a reality to improve outcomes and enhance patient and provider safety.”

The Teleflex Vascular Division markets a broad range of catheters for vascular access and vascular catheter management technologies, including the Arrow brand of devices, already a market leader in Europe.