Surgical Procedures

France-based Germitec aims to double its yearly revenue by expanding its UV-C disinfection technology for endocavitary ultrasound probes into the US market.

Volta Medical’s TAILORED-AF clinical trial demonstrates that AI can achieve "superior efficacy" in interventional cardiology. The study examined the use of AI-driven Volta AF-Xplorer in addition to pulmonary vein isolation in treating patient with persistent atrial fibrillation.

While communications from the FDA have been scant since the presidential transition, early alerts from the agency’s device center are flowing again. The most recent alert includes an issue with numerous injuries and four deaths associated with a device used during cardiac procedures.

An innovative patient monitoring system developed by Danish physicians sends vital signs data directly to nurses, allowing them to keep tabs on patients without being in the room.

Stryker is selling its $700m spinal implants business to Viscogliosi Brothers, forming a new entity VB Spine, which will maintain a strong partnership with Stryker. The company also reported strong Q4 financials and announced a CFO transition.

During CES 2025, Medtech Insight accompanied Deloitte analysts Neal Batra and Andrew Davis to identify the biggest trends in digital health and solutions poised to transform the future of health care. Key trends included empowering consumers with actionable health data, the rising investment in specialized areas such as women’s health, and more companies pursuing regulatory clearance for health products.

Several pages on the US FDA website related to diversity and inclusion are down, which aligns with Trump’s recent executive order on diversity, equity, and inclusion. However, the Department of Health says there's been a “short pause” in communications to allow the incoming team to get in place.

Boston Scientific's Farapulse Pulsed Field Ablation System achieved safety and effectiveness endpoints in the ADVANTAGE AF clinical trial for the treatment of persistent atrial fibrillation, supporting “the paradigm shift to pulse-field ablation,” said Vivek Reddy, director of electrophysiology at Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital.

Boston-area start-up Axoft is developing a soft brain-computer interface device to help coma patients with covert consciousness communicate. Medtech Insight spoke with Axoft’s CEO Paul Le Floch about the technology, plans for first-in-human trials and potential future applications of the device to help patients with disorders of consciousness, including patients in a coma or vegetative state, communicate.

Jerome Trividic, CEO of Swiss company Spineart, believes that by solving pain points felt by orthopedic surgeons performing spinal procedures, it can improve patient outcomes. He thinks the firm’s innovative approach, which focuses on partnership deals as well as developing its own products, will give it a competitive edge in the spinal surgery market.

After raising $68m series B funding in September, Neo Medical's announced on 2 December that its entire product portfolio has secured EU MDR approval. Co-CEO and founder Vincent Lefauconnier explained the rationale to Medtech Insight.

Medtech Insight spoke with Meghan Scanlon, president of Boston Scientific’s urology division, about integration plans for the recently acquired Axonics medtech. The purchase adds sacral neuromodulation to Boston Scientific’s portfolio, a global market that research reports valued at $1.6bn in 2023.

This week, Zimmer Biomet announced a new role of chief movement officer for Arnold Schwarzenegger, J&J MedTech receives IDE approval for Ottava, Dassault Systèmes with US FDA develop first guide for virtual twins, Mainz Biomed and Thermo Fisher team up to fight colorectal cancer.

The US FDA’s advisory panel on general and plastic surgery devices voted in favor of agency approval for a novel medical device for treating early stage, low-risk breast cancer as a potential alternative to lumpectomy. The agency is expected to make its decision on the device early next year.

This week, HistoSonics announced it will bring its ultrasound system for destroying liver tumors into VA hospitals, Edwards Lifesciences reports encouraging TRISCEND II trial results at TCT, study finds blood test for CRC screening are less cost-effective than alternatives, and more.

Tricuspid valve innovation has taken off since the US FDA’s 2023 authorizations of Edwards' Evoque and Abbott's TriClip systems. Whether to repair or replace tricuspid valves remains an open, nuanced question among cardiologists. Dr. Henrik Treede of University Hospital Mainz and TriCares CEO Ahmed Elmouelhi offer views on the evolving space.

This week, Establishment Labs Holdings announced the FDA gave it premarket approval for Motiva breast implant, Cologuard lands FDA approval for Cologuard Plus and GE HealthCare gets FDA nod for a new imaging agent. The FDA announces another expansion for TAP into ophthalmology and radiology. The AAMI and CTA will join forces to develop standards for AI and ML-enabled health care products.  

Spain-based Inbrain Neuroelectronics plans first-in-human study to show safety of its graphene-based technology in direct contact with human brain while also developing a second interface for treating Parkinson’s disease.

After announcing positive results showing that its Stentrode BCI is safe in six patients, brain-computer interface company Synchron is planning a pivotal trial to eventually file for FDA approval.

According to Zacks Equity Research, the new trial seeks to support AlphaVac’s adoption in the European market, where pulmonary embolism prevalence and severity is an estimated 435,000 events annually.