Medtronic announced Monday that it was launching a new bone cement in the U.S. -- Kyphon Xpede Bone Cement, according to a press release published on PharmiWeb.com. Xpede Bone Cement is a quick-to-dough polymethylmethacrylate bone cement used to treat spinal fractures with minimally invasive Kyphon Balloon Kyphoplasty.
Because Xpede Bone Cement reaches the doughy state more than twice as fast as Kyphon’s ActivOs 10 and HV-R bone cements, Xpede Bone Cement helps streamline the Kyphon Balloon Kyphoplasty procedure, while giving the surgeon increased control and more time to use the product in surgical procedures involving spinal fractures.
According to the press release, Alex DiNello, general manager and vice president of the Kyphon Products Division said, “Xpede Bone Cement not only is quick to dough, but also provides all of the handling characteristics that physicians have grown to expect from the Kyphon Products Division, which pioneered balloon kyphoplasty. These include a long working time and radiopacity for easy visualization during minimally invasive and image-guided procedures. With this product, Medtronic continues to leverage our leadership position in balloon kyphoplasty for the treatment of vertebral compression fractures. Since we began marketing this treatment in 2000, an estimated 900,000 fractures have been treated worldwide with Kyphon Balloon Kyphoplasty by approximately 14,000 trained spine specialists.”
Meanwhile, Kyphon CFO Gary Ellis told analysts that the company’s revenue was down five percent, noting that Kyphon has a ways to go to get surgeons to see the benefits of Kyphon Balloon Kyphoplasty. "We remain focused upon generating evidence to support the clinical and economic benefits of BKP," Ellis said.
