Prescriptions of emergency allergy auto-injectors have increased over the last decade, according to research published in the British Journal of General Practice, but there is little guidance for general practitioners on the optimal use of these devices. The most recent guidelines suggest that each child at risk of anaphylaxis should be given no more than 2 devices […]
Drug-Device Combinations
3D printing is taking medical marijuana to a whole new level
3D printing is aiding an Israel-based company in the development and production of special selective-dose inhalers for medical marijuana and other medicinal plants. Nano Dimension (Ness Ziona, Israel)—which makes 3D printers for printed circuit boards—announced today that it has leased a DragonFly 2020 3D printer to Syqe Medical (Tel Aviv, Israel). Syqe boasts that it has created the […]
Medtronic’s SynchroMed woes delay United Therapeutic’s Remodulin
Shares in United Therapeutics (NSDQ:UTHR) fell -3% yesterday on a possible delay for the release of a programmable infusion pump for its drug, Remodulin. Yesterday, the FDA updated Medtronic‘s (NYSE:MDT) Class I recall for the company’s SynchroMed II and SynchroMed EL implantable drug pumps. RBC Capital reportedly said the recall puts United Therapeutics at heightened risk for […]
Ocular touts patient experience data for Dextenza implant
Ocular Therapeutix (NSDQ:OCUL) touted data today from a patient experience study of its Dextenza post-surgical pain relief implant. The study was published in Patient Preference and Adherence. The Bedford, Mass.-based company’s hydrogel plug, inserted into a patient’s tear duct, is designed to deliver a sustained dose of dexamethasone over 4 weeks following ophthalmic surgery. After the […]
FDA announces updates to Medtronic’s Class I recall for SynchroMed drug pumps
The FDA today updated Medtronic’s Class I recall for the company’s SynchroMed II and SynchroMed EL implantable drug pumps, which were designed to locally treat primary or metastatic cancer, chronic pain, and severe spasticity. The pumps were recalled in 2013 because they unintentionally delivered drugs during the priming bolus procedure and patients were at risk for […]
Scientists develop microjet device for needle-free vaccine delivery
Researchers from the University of California Berkeley have developed a needle-free delivery device for vaccines. The team published their work in Science Translational Medicine. The MucoJet device is a pill that releases its cargo in a microjet when pressed up against the cheek. The pressure generated from pushing the device against the cheek is enough to […]
Researchers develop sweat-based glucose monitoring & maintenance device
Researchers from the Center for Nanoparticle Research at the Institute for Basic Science have developed a sweat-based glucose monitoring and maintenance device. The team’s work was published this week in Science Advances. The sweat-based system rapidly measures glucose using small sensors and delivers a precise, controlled dosage of drug according to the device’s measurements, the team […]
BTG’s Ekos device targets pulmonary embolism with drug, ultrasound wave combo therapy
Each year, pulmonary embolisms kill more people in the U.S. than AIDs and breast cancer combined, according to BTG (LON:BTG). Venous clots in the legs or arm break off and travel through a patient’s circulatory system, eventually getting trapped in the lung and blocking the flow of blood. In some cases, this strains the heart’s ability to […]
Ocular misses estimates for Q4 earnings, but beats on rev
Shares in Ocular Therapeutix (NSDQ:OCUL) fell today after the biopharmaceutical company missed earnings expectations, but beat sales estimates on Wall Street with its 4th quarter results. The Bedford, Mass.-based company posted losses of -$-12.8 million, or -52¢ per share, on sales of $0.5 million for the 3 months ended Dec. 31, for bottom-line loss of -20.5% on […]
Medtronic launches DCB clinical trial for below-the-knee peripheral artery disease
Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) said today that it launched a clinical trial to evaluate the use of its In.Pact paclitaxel-coated percutaneous transluminal angioplasty balloon catheter in patients with below-the-knee peripheral arterial disease. The company treated its 1st patient in the In.Pact BTK study, performing the procedure on a patient with critical limb ischemia. “The 1st patient enrollment in […]