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Knee-Injury Device For Humans
Approved By FDA
03
Oct 2007
As
edited by Joint-Pain-Forum.com
A new knee-surgery device investigated by University of Missouri-Columbia
researchers that will help to repair meniscus tears, which were previously
defined as irreparable, has been approved by the FDA for use in humans.
Previous treatment options forced surgeons to completely remove the
damaged portion of the meniscus. Typically the removal of the meniscus leads to
painful, debilitating arthritis in the knee. Herb Schwartz, president and CEO of
Schwartz Biomedical, LLC, and James Cook, MU professor of veterinary medicine
and surgery and William C. Allen Endowed Scholar for Orthopedic Research in MU's
College of Veterinary Medicine, developed the BioDuct Meniscal Fixation Device.
Schwartz and Cook believe that patients with meniscus tears will now be able to
have their meniscus saved along with long-term knee function.
"In the
past, when faced with meniscus injuries, surgeons were often forced to
completely remove the torn meniscal cartilage, leaving a deficient knee that was
doomed to develop arthritis," Cook said. "With the BioDuct Meniscal Fixation
Device, surgeons will be able to repair torn menisci and induce healing. People
with meniscus injuries now have a better future ahead."
The meniscus, a
padding tissue that provides shock absorption and joint stability in the knee,
is crucial for normal knee function. Surgeries for meniscus tears are common
with approximately one million occurring in the United States each year. When
meniscus function is deficient, bone rubs on bone and arthritis is likely to
develop and progress. Because two-thirds of the meniscus is avascular (lacks a
blood supply), a tear in that region will not repair itself. This new device
will transport blood and cells from the vascular portion of the knee to the
avascular portion of the meniscus. Supplied with blood and cells for healing,
the previously untreatable meniscal tear now has the potential for allowing the
knee joint to be saved.
Cook's research team performed the BioDuct
surgery on 25 dogs that had worst-case scenario meniscal tears. With the BioDuct
Meniscal Fixation Device, the meniscus in the dogs' knees had complete or
partial repair after a few weeks in all cases.
"Currently, there are no
other devices that can provide improved fixation over time," Schwartz said.
"Therefore, the BioDuct device is set apart from the rest of the field."
In his research, Cook found that the device will significantly improve
healing of avascular meniscal tears both biologically and biomechanically, which
should lessen the long-term effects of meniscus injuries, including
osteoarthritis. Cook's recent findings were published in the American Journal of
Sports Medicine.
"The BioDuct device could impact the industry by
improving repairs of the meniscus to such an extent that fewer patients develop
arthritis that results from removing the meniscal tissue," Schwartz said. "Thus,
with fewer patients developing arthritis, the result could be fewer total joint
replacements or at least delaying the need for a total joint replacement."
----------------------------
Article
adapted by
www.Joint-Pain-Forum.com from original press release.
----------------------------
Cook recently won the national Thank Your Vet for a Healthy Pet award from the
Morris Animal Foundation and Merial and Bow Tie Inc. Cook was chosen from more
than 1,100 nominations. The award is given to those veterinarians who
demonstrate compassion and unwavering commitment to helping their clients. Cook
will be presented with the award in February at the Western Veterinary
Conference in Las Vegas, Nev.
Source: Christian Basi
University of Missouri-Columbia
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