December 27, 2007 - The Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) 2008 Conference and Expo will take place May 31 through June 2 in San Jose, CA.

December 27, 2007 - Power Medical Interventions Inc. said last week the FDA cleared its 510(k) application for marketing its intelligent iDrive surgical devices, which includes a suite of reusable, self-contained, hand-held devices that can be used to power and control PMI’s existing suite of Digital Loading Units.

December 28, 2007 – State-of-the-art digital Picture Archiving and Communications Systems (PACS) technology is changing the way Britain’s National Health Service captures, records and uses patient X-rays and scans in every hospital trust, the Department of Health said Thursday.

December 27, 2007 - After a longer-than-expected maintenance shutdown, production of radioisotopes for molecular imaging and targeted therapy is back online at the National Research Universal (NRU) reactor in Chalk River, Ontario. The reactor was returned to service following direct intervention by the Canadian government, which in effect over-ruled the safety concerns of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC).

December 27, 2007 - GE Healthcare announced today that it has entered into an agreement with DRAXIMAGE, a division of DRAXIS Health Inc. of Montreal, Canada, to become the exclusive distributor of DRAXIMAGE Sestamibi upon its approval by the FDA and the expiration of the primary innovator patent.

An abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for DRAXIMAGE Sestamibi was submitted by DRAXIMAGE to the FDA in February 2007, and is currently under review.

December 27, 2007 - Integris Bass Baptist Health Center will construct a new Clinac iX linear accelerator by Varian Medical Systems, to allow doctors to treat tumors with better precision through intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and image guided radiation therapy (IGRT).

Patient mobility is provided by the Exact Couch, which uses remote couch motion operators to quickly and accurately move a patient without affecting the treatment.

Microsoft Corp. recently launched HealthVault, a software and services platform aimed at helping people better manage their health information.

December 26, 2007 - A new line of functional and comfortable tracheostomy tube holders that are offered with designs for babies, kids and teens was introduced by Dale Medical Products Inc. of Plainville, MA

Hospitals have struggled to prevent hospital-acquired infections, which kill tens of thousands of people each year, and a new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved VaproSure Sterilizer made by STERIS may be more effective at cleaning patient rooms than the traditional mop-and-bucket.

Recently the EPA approved the VaproSure Sterilizer, which the maker says has been shown to effectively eradicate almost all
bacteria, viruses and MRSA. The sterilizer makes it possible to sterilize all of the exposed pre-cleaned surfaces within a sealed room.

Radiometer announced the availability of a glucose test on its ABL80 FLEX blood gas analysis system.

The test reportedly delivers superior accuracy, stability and interference-free glucose performance in a portable STAT analyzer. The analyzer’s glucose sensor demonstrates a wide measuring range (0-75 mmol/L) and linearity. Very stable, the sensor cassettes require no special handling and can be stored at room temperature. The ABL80 FLEX glucose sensor demonstrates noninterference (

December 2007

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