I n t e l l i g e n t D e s i g n a n d D e v e l o p m e n t | |
| | PRESS RELEASE "Lucent Medical Systems Reaches Development Milestone" Kirkland, WA - Medical Systems today announced a major breakthrough in the company's magnetic detection technology, paving the way for the commercialization of a family of medical devices that can be located by their magnetic "signature". According to Robert Golden, Chief Technology Officer for the three year-old medical device company, Lucent engineers have been able to view the location and orientation of a small (2.5 mm long X 1 mm diameter) magnet with a hand-held detector at clinically useful distances. In addition, the company's latest technology makes it possible to render an image of the magnetized device on a portable display, opening the door to a variety of clinical applications. "Our progress is exciting," Golden said, "because we know there is a strong clinical need for a simple, low cost method for device localization." Lucent Medical's technology pairs hand-held detectors with magnetized versions of existing, high-volume disposable devices, such as catheters, to reduce the overall cost of treating patients. These systems will allow health care providers to noninvasively locate indwelling disposable devices with less reliance on more costly procedures such as x-ray. Initially, the company plans to market systems for locating enteral feeding tubes and vascular access catheters. Enteral feeding tubes are used to provide nutrition to patients who cannot feed themselves; vascular access catheters deliver medications and nutrition directly into the bloodstream. Each system will consist of a magnetized disposable and a hand-held detector. Lucent Medical has created an extensive patent portfolio to protect its technology. In recent months, the company has been awarded two U.S. patents regarding "Apparatus and Method for Locating a Medical Tube in the Body of a Patient." Additional U.S. filings are in process and applications have been made for intellectual property protection in key international markets. Lucent Medical Systems was founded in 1994 to commercialize cost-saving medical inventions whose initial research and proof of concept was conducted by researchers at the University of Washington. The company received start-up funding from private investments, including JAFCO (formerly the Japan Associated Finance Corporation), and the Rathmann Family Foundation. The company has also received Small Business Innovation Research grants from the National Center for Research Resources of the National Institutes of Health.
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