Laserscope issued new U.S. patent

Jan 26 2006

Laserscope announced today that it has been issued an important U.S. patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) relating to the use of its Photoselective Vaporization (PV) method and technology for therapeutic treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and other tissues in the human body.

U.S. Patent number 6986764, "Method and System for Photoselective Vaporization of the Prostate and Other Tissue," covers the unique and innovative methods and equipment of Laserscope that enable doctors to quickly vaporize targeted tissue while causing only minimal coagulation and heat damage to surrounding healthy tissue. The treatment method uses the GreenLight PV(R) laser system, Laserscope's leading surgical product, to perform the Photoselective Vaporization of the Prostate ("PVP") procedure. The capabilities of this treatment method are fundamental to achieving the excellent clinical outcomes of procedures such as PVP. The newly issued patent covers a wide spectrum of applications where tissue vaporization without significant coagulation is important.

"We are pleased to have been issued this patent, which reinforces the intellectual property protection afforded to these core Laserscope methods and technologies used in our current GreenLight(TM) products," said Eric Reuter, Laserscope President and CEO. "Clinical studies continue to validate that concentrated, powerful laser light at the 532 nanometer wavelength, used by our GreenLight(R) PV laser system, has ideal characteristics to achieve both fast vaporization and hemostatic coagulation of tissue which results in superior clinical outcomes for the patient in many applications."

Photoselective vaporization works by applying very high laser irradiances (light energy per unit of surface area) of a specific wavelength to tissue and tissue components (chromophores) that highly absorb light of that wavelength. This quickly vaporizes and removes the affected tissue while leaving behind a very thin zone of coagulated tissue. This remaining zone of coagulated tissue is usually sufficient to substantially reduce or even prevent post-operative bleeding while being thin enough to reduce the side effects and damage to surrounding tissue caused by significant coagulation.

PVP is rapidly becoming known as the new standard of care and could become a therapy of choice for the millions of men worldwide who are suffering from the symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) or enlarged prostate disease. In a PVP procedure, a urologist working under endoscopic visualization, directs a very thin sterile single-use fiber optic device into the patient's urethra to vaporize and remove the obstructive prostate tissue so that the urine can pass unobstructed out of the body. PVP is typically a minimally invasive, outpatient procedure providing a clean, open urinary channel through the prostate, immediate urinary flow relief, few complications, substantial symptom relief, and minimal side-effects for the patient. We know of no other procedures used to treat BPH which result in the long-term clinical efficacy, low complication rates, and minimal side effects that PVP provides. Compared to traditional surgical methods, the surgery is easy for doctors to learn and perform. It is estimated that over 100,000 PVP procedures have been performed worldwide since the commercialization of PVP with the GreenLight(R) PV laser system in 2002.