Ethicon Endo-Surgery introduces several novel surgical solutions at ACS Annual Clinical Congress

Oct 12 2009

Ethicon Endo-Surgery introduced several novel surgical solutions at the 95th Annual Clinical Congress of the American College of Surgeons, highlighting how the company is enabling innovation through collaboration across the continuum of surgical techniques and options. A surgeon-only online community, first-of-its-kind technology to improve surgical visualization, a new Access System for single-site laparoscopy (SSL), and an articulating endoscopic linear cutter are among the latest additions to the Ethicon Endo-Surgery portfolio of solutions that respond to surgeon and patient needs.

The online community, sponsored by Ethicon Endo-Surgery and unveiled at ACS, is designed specifically for registered surgeons to post and share best-practice procedures, tips and technique videos with their fellow surgeons. Attendees at ACS have the opportunity to preview the community, which has been developed in collaboration with surgeons as a complement to traditional educational resources in an effort to increase peer-to-peer discussion. Community members will have the ability to post comments in real-time on videos hosted on the site and respond to comments left by other users. The community will be moderated by a panel of surgeons.

"We collaborate with a worldwide network of surgeons to drive the development of new and novel solutions that are designed to improve outcomes for patients and the overall experience for surgeons," said Kevin Lobo, worldwide president, Ethicon Endo-Surgery. "A prime example is the online community we are introducing at ACS, which is designed to provide a place to initiate discussions between surgeons about different surgical techniques and approaches across the continuum of surgery. It's a new and easy way in today's time-crunched world for surgeons to increase the knowledge among us and collaborate in our collective pursuit of advancing surgery to improve patient care."

New product innovations introduced at the Annual ACS Clinical Congress include:

• Echelon Flex(TM) Endopath® Stapler: The novel one-handed design of the device, which builds upon other proven Echelon(TM) Endopath® products with the addition of natural articulation, is intended to provide surgeons with improved access during surgery while reducing interruptions. The Echelon Flex Endopath Stapler is used to cut and staple tissue in a variety of surgical procedures, including bariatric, thoracic, colorectal, gynecologic, urologic and general surgery. The Echelon Flex(TM) Endopath® Stapler, designed in collaboration with surgeons, is the latest offering from the company's Echelon(TM) Endopath® line of surgical stapling products, which provides enhanced system wide compression. Understanding tissue dynamics and the effects of surgery upon the tissue is at the foundation of product development at Ethicon Endo-Surgery.

• ENDOPATH® XCEL(TM) with Optiview(TM) technology. The first and only universal-seal trocar intended to mitigate trocar-induced smudging, a frustrating occurrence for surgeons that can cause interruptions during surgery, by minimizing the need for repeated cleaning of the endoscope lens.

• Ethicon Endo-Surgery SSL Access System: The latest surgical product highlighting the Ethicon Endo-Surgery commitment to advancing minimally invasive surgery with solutions across the continuum of the surgical spectrum. The single port access device provides surgeons versatility and efficiency for single-site laparoscopy. The SSL Access System consists of two 5mm seals and a larger 15mm seal in a low profile design that allows surgeons to use a wide variety of instrumentation across several different procedures. Unique to the device is the 360 degree rotation of the seal cap which enables quick re-orientation of instruments during procedures and reduces the need for instrument exchanges.

As part of this ongoing collaboration with surgeons to advance the future of surgery, the company also is hosting a panel discussion, "Explore New Frontiers in Innovation," that will feature three leading surgeons and a keynote address from Bernard A. Harris, M.D., former NASA clinical scientist and flight surgeon. The discussion will focus on how research and development for innovations of the future can produce benefits to surgeons today. Dr. Harris will discuss how NASA research has impacted surgery and medicine.

The panel will feature Dr. Santiago Horgan, director of minimally invasive surgery at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine; Dr. Alan Wittgrove, laparoscopic gastric bypass surgeon of the Wittgrove Bariatric Surgery Center and former president of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery; and Dr. Moises Jacob, director of the Advanced Surgical Institute at Mercy Hospital in Miami, Florida and clinical associate professor in the department of surgery, FIU College of Medicine.