Leading UK diagnostics company Beckman Coulter has a created a direct sales operation, Beckman Coulter Diagnostics, to serve laboratory customers in the Republic of Ireland.

The new company integrates the existing team from long-term distributor Brennan & Company with the UK's Beckman Coulter organisation, formerly Olympus Diagnostics.

"Our objective is to provide our customers with easy and direct access to a complete range of solutions from a single provider," said Piers Devereux, Managing Director of Beckman Coulter Ireland.

"Customers who already know and value their team at Brennan & Company can be reassured they will be served by the same dedicated people. The relationship will now be enhanced - by the additional support and resources of a company recognised globally as a leader in laboratory automation and clinical chemistry, with a fast-growing segment in immunoassay testing."

Beckman Coulter has a long-established manufacturing presence in Ireland. Its factories in Galway and County Clare have been expanded in recent years, with new facilities and new products, making diagnostic tests for customers throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

In addition, the company's R&D team in Ireland is collaborating with the the National University of Ireland in a five-year research partnership to develop infectious disease tests for a planned molecular diagnostic instrument, the DxN: a simple automated solution that brings complex, labour-intensive diagnostic tests within the scope of routine hospital laboratory work.

The integration of the businesses will be completed by spring 2011.

Medtech corporations Boston Scientific and Stryker have executed a definitive agreement under which Stryker will acquire Boston Scientific's Neurovascular business.

The purchase price is $1.5 billion in cash, with $1.4 billion payable at closing and $100 million payable on the commercialisation of pipeline products and the transfer of manufacturing facilities over the following two years.

The transaction is expected to close before the end of the year, subject to regulatory and other clearances.

Boston Scientific will provide transitional services and supply products (at cost) to Stryker during the transition period.

"The sale of our Neurovascular business is part of our overall strategic plan that will refocus our portfolio to, amongst other criteria, leverage existing sales forces with least invasive, cost and comparatively effective medical devices that reduce or eliminate refractory drug regimens," said Ray Elliott, President and CEO of Boston Scientific.

"The proceeds from this sale will allow us to invest in future growth opportunities more aligned with that strategy while also reducing overall debt leverage."

"We deeply appreciate the contributions of our Neurovascular employees and wish them continued success going forward in this new venture," added Elliott. "We believe this transaction will prove to be a win-win for all parties."

Boston Scientific established its Neurovascular business with the acquisition of Target Therapeutics in 1997. Based in Fremont, California, the Neurovascular business develops less-invasive technologies to treat brain aneurysms and other cerebrovascular disorders.

An expert group has called for severely obese people with Type 2 diabetes to have better access to bariatric surgery.

The taskforce Experts in Severe and Complex Obesity (ESCO) argues that more widespread use of bariatric surgery could prevent or treat many cases of Type 2 diabetes in the UK.

ESCO was launched by the National Obesity Forum in 2009 to promote equitable access and viable funding for the NHS treatment of people with severe or complex obesity. The group includes experts in surgery, endocrinology, dietetics, psychology, gynaecology and health economics.

Diabetes guidelines endorse bariatric surgery for type 2 diabetes management in those with a BMI of 35 and over. Cost is often cited as a major barrier to budget holders. But as the recent OHE report Shedding the Pounds highlighted, gastric bypass surgery can pay for itself within 3.5 years through reduced drug costs and hospital admissions.

Dr Carel Le Roux, consultant physician and ESCO member, said: "It is now uniformly accepted by professionals that bariatric surgery not only has the capacity to induce major weight loss in the long term, but also leads to the remission of diabetes in 84% of cases, sometimes within days, resulting in patients no longer needing costly treatments with drugs such as insulin.

"As we face an ever-growing obesity epidemic, the more we will see a rise in its related conditions with a large increase in the prevalence of Type 2 diabetes. Given the well-documented costs associated with Type 2 diabetes, the success of bariatric treatment on severe and complex obese patients with Type 2 diabetes can no longer be overlooked."

Matt McGrath (32), founder of medical device firm Aircraft Medical, has won the 2010 Gannochy Trust Innovation Award from the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE).

The leading personal accolade for innovation in Scotland, the award consists of a gold medal and a £50,000 cash prize that the winner can invest as they choose.

Aircraft Medical has developed the world's first fully portable video laryngoscope, used in over 250,000 operations. The device addresses the risk of failure to deliver oxygen to a patient under general anaesthetic.

Lord Wilson of Tillyorn, President of the RSE, said: "I am delighted to announce that Matt McGrath of Aircraft Medical is the recipient of the 2010 Gannochy Trust Innovation Award of the RSE. His McGRATH Series 5 laryngoscope has already saved lives around the world, and we know that he plans to use the prize money to identify other products which will deal with clinical needs in anaesthesia."

Mark Webster, Chairman of the Gannochy Trust, said: "Matt McGrath has made a huge contribution to medical products. His interest and purpose has been to design and bring to production devices which would improve medical procedures to assist the treatment and therefore the welfare of the patient. He has been tenacious to an extraordinary extent."

"I am very grateful to The Royal Society of Edinburgh and to the Gannochy Trust for this award, and for the recognition of the social and economic significance of the McGrath video laryngoscope," said Matt McGrath. "The prize will be invested in a research project to identify unmet clinical needs in anaesthesia and critical care practice. The project will aim to identify and establish a new development project with global potential."

 
L-R: Lord Wilson of Tillyorn, Matt McGrath and Mark Webster

Clinicians who deliver radiation to the brain and heart should minimise their patients' exposure while maintaining essential medical benefits, according to advice from the Health Protection Agency (HPA).

The HPA's Advisory Group on Ionising Radiation (AGIR) has reviewed recent studies on the risks of circulatory disease following exposure to ionising radiation.

AGIR recommends that clinicians who use radiation for therapeutic or diagnostic purposes should keep doses to patients' brains and hearts as low as possible. It also emphasises the need for further study of risks to patients.

Professor Bryn Bridges, Chairman of AGIR, said: "High radiation doses are known to have effects on the heart. What is less clear is the magnitude of risk at the low dose levels commonly of concern in the protection of nuclear workers, the public and patients.

"Our report found evidence of risk down to around 0.5 Gray. Below that dose, interpretation is hindered by inadequate control of major lifestyle factors associated with heart disease. Furthermore, our understanding of the ways in which radiation might cause circulatory disease is too poor to justify the extrapolation of information obtained using high doses to the estimation of possible risk at low doses."

Dr John Cooper, director of the HPA's Centre for Radiation, Chemicals and Environmental Hazards, said: "It is reassuring that the committee was largely satisfied about present practices in relation to patient safety, radiation exposure and circulatory disease risk and recommends that clinicians working in this field should continue to maintain and spread best practice and where possible keep up with technical developments that reduce exposure of the brain, heart and blood system."

The HPA is now setting up a research programme into the role of radiation in causing cardiovascular disease.

Leading community pharmacy Lloydspharmacy has acquired an 80% shareholding in Betterlife Healthcare, the UK's largest online and mail order retailer of mobility and assisted living products.

The acquisition will enable Lloydspharmacy to offer a wider range of devices for independent living, including mobility scooters, kitchen and bathing equipment, lifts and homecare products.

Two of Betterlife Healthcare's founding directors, Derek Abrahams and Grant Abrahams, will work with Lloydspharmacy to offer the company's range of products via the pharmacy's website and through its network of over 1,650 pharmacies in the UK.

Betterlife Healthcare will retain its existing brand and continue to trade from its existing website. A new sub-brand will be introduced for mail order and in-pharmacy customers.

"Betterlife Healthcare is an excellent strategic fit with Lloydspharmacy that will enable us to offer customers of both companies access to a much wider range of healthcare products," said Paul O'Hanlon, Lloydspharmacy Director.

"Lloydspharmacy has pioneered the provision of online pharmacy and healthcare services, including development of an online doctor service. Betterlife enables us to build this online offering and also take their products to a whole new customer base via our UK network of community pharmacies."

"We are delighted to be selling the Betterlife business to a strong healthcare brand such as Lloydspharmacy and look forward to working with our new partners to continue building the business and service offering," said Derek Abrahams, Betterlife Healthcare Director.

Both Lloydspharmacy and Betterlife Healthcare have pioneered the selling of healthcare products and services via the Internet.

A new UK network of Technology and Innovation Centres (TICs), supported by more than £200m of public funding, will be set up to drive growth in high-tech industries.

The TICs will act as a bridge between the business and academic sectors. They will support companies in developing and commercialising new technologies, and help them to access new funding streams.

Business secretary Vince Cable said: "We need to do more to ensure the UK benefits from its world-class research. These centres will help take ideas from the drawing board to the marketplace. They will play a key role in helping firms develop new products and processes so they can grow and prosper.

"High-tech industries are the future of the British economy. Growing sectors that exploit these new and emerging technologies will help re-balance the economy and provide the highly skilled, well-paid jobs we need."

The new centres, which will receive funding over the next four years, will be based on the model proposed recently by Dr Hermann Hauser, Chairman of the East of England Stem Cell Network:

"Individual TICs need to operate with a high level of autonomy, to give them the flexibility to respond to business needs and market opportunities. They need to build strong relationships with both business and academia, and with other institutions active in the technology area they operate in."

Each TIC will focus on a specific technology that has a major potential global market and a significant UK capability. Possible areas identified by Dr Hauser include regenerative medicine.

The network will be established by the Technology Strategy Board (TSB), which will work with industry, universities and other stakeholders to identify the technologies the TICs will support. The TSB will decide which existing centres to invest in by April 2011, and then consider which new centres to start.

 
Dr Hermann Hauser

A new imaging technology has enabled the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust to target lung tumours precisely for radiotherapy while they move with the patient's breathing.

The Symmetry motion management software from Elekta enables clear visualisation of small moving targets, and can capture tumour positions that are virtually invisible with static imaging.

A 67-year-old female patient with lung cancer presented the hospital with a challenge: the small tumour was a blur on the therapy system's imaging equipment. Symmetry made it possible to isolate the tumour for treatment with stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT), which aims a potent dose precisely at the tumour.

Symmetry is a feature set of Elekta's X-ray Volume Imaging package of software for Image Guided Radiation Therapy. The 4D setting enables clinicians to compensate for target motion when the patient is in the treatment position just before therapy.

"For this patient, and many similar lung cancer cases, Symmetry is invaluable," said Kevin N. Franks, M.D., Consultant in Clinical Oncology at St. James Institute of Oncology, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. "Our first patient's tumour was just 1.4cm in size and its range of motion when she breathed was 2.4cm because it was close to her diaphragm.

"Without Symmetry, SBRT might still have been possible as the tumour was distant from critical organs, but we would have had to increase the treatment margins around the tumour to account for the increased uncertainty about the tumour's position. The worst case scenario is not using SBRT and treating her with a conventional technique that is likely less effective."

Elekta develops advanced tools and treatment planning systems for radiation therapy and radiosurgery, as well as workflow-enhancing software systems across the spectrum of cancer care.

 
Elekta Symmetry

Private healthcare provider Aspen Healthcare has invested in an IT solution to combine mammography and osteoporosis screening.

Holly House Hospital, Essex is the first hospital in the UK to use this solution from Sectra, which includes a low-dose mammography solution.

Osteoporosis-related fractures are a major health threat for women. Recent global initiatives advocate screening for osteoporosis, as early treatment can reduce the danger of losing mobility.

Sectra's solution will enable female patients to combine mammography with osteoporosis screening in a single visit. Women presenting for mammography at Holly House will now be offered a bone density scan based on a single radiology image of the hand. The dxr-online service provides a simple and cost-effective way to identify patients at risk of fractures.

"We are extremely excited to be using these exceptional technologies for our mammography and osteoporosis services," said Allyson Budino, Manager of the Diagnostic Centre at Holly House Hospital. "The dxr-online service has enabled us to safely monitor patients' bone mineral density on a regular basis, providing early indication of the risk of developing osteoporosis and therefore giving the patient the opportunity for a better quality of life."

"Our technology is to be used as a component in the risk evaluation of future fractures and is one of the most efficient ways to detect women in the risk zone," commented Jakob Algulin, Manager of Sectra's rheumatology business line.

Sectra's mammography system, Sectra MicroDose Mammography, generates the lowest radiation dose of any system on the market. Breast tissue is sensitive to radiation, and it is therefore crucial that the dose is minimised.

Sectra is a leading global provider of PACS digital radiology systems.

 
Sectra MicroDose mammography

NICE has recommended a 1.2mg dose of Victoza (liraglutide) for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus.

But it has failed to recommend a daily 1.8mg dose saying the increase did not show any “significant additional benefit”.

In final guidance, Victoza 1.2 mg in duel therapy regimens is recommended if patients are intolerant to metformin and a sulphonylurea, or treatment is contraindicated, and are also intolerant to certain inhibitors.

Type 2 diabetes affects around 2.25 million people in the UK.

Victoza 1.2mg is also recommended as part of triple therapy regimens with other advised treatments only when control of glucose remains or becomes inadequate. But patients must have a certain body mass index (BMI) and psychological or medical problems associated with high body weight; or the same BMI where insulin would have significant occupational implications, or weight loss would benefit obesity-related comorbidites.

“We are pleased to recommend liraglutide 1.2 mg daily as a clinically and cost effective treatment option for some patients with the disease,” said Dr Carole Longson, Health Technology Evaluation Centre Director at NICE.