New Products and Industry News

Intermittent catheter helps reduce urethral friction and infection

    Mentor Corporation (Santa Barbara, Calif.), an international medical product supplier, announced the launch of the company’s new Self-Cath® Hydrogel™ intermittent urinary catheter.

    The product features a proprietary micro-bead lubricant coating that reduces urethral friction and an introducer tip designed to reduce the risk of urinary tract infections. The hybrid design of the catheter combined with the additional benefits of contact-free catheter usage and an innovative telescoping extension sleeve, are intended to provide additional protection against cross-contamination of the catheter, which can lead to infection.

   The compact, pocket-sized packaging presents a significant improvement from conventional catheters in maintaining privacy and ease of use.

   Intermittent urinary catheterization has been identified as the preferred method of bladder management because it closely mimics the body’s natural function.

    Call (805) 879-6082 or visit https://www.mentorcorp.com for more information.

Bariatric wheelchair cushion helps reduce pain, pressure ulcers

    EHOB (Indianapolis, Ind.) introduces the Bariatric Wheelchair Cushion^® to the company’s line of Waffle® Brand Products. The bariatric cushion has been tested and evaluated at facilities across the United States over the past 8 months. The results of these evaluations demonstrate the seat cushion is successful in preventing and treating pressure ulcers, as well as assisting with pain management.

    The company introduced the bariatric seat cushion during Symposium on Advanced Wound Care (SAWC), held April 21–24, 2005, in San Diego, Calif.

    Additional features of the seat cushion include:
   • Skin temperature and moisture control is achieved with the hole pattern that naturally circulates air allowing the skin to breathe
  • Product is antimicrobial and antifungal
  • Pressure, friction, and shear are dramatically decreased through non-gradient pressure
  • Cushion is lightweight, easy to clean, and has a 6-month limited warranty.

    Visit https://www.ehob.com for more information.

Medical summit focuses on preventing amputations

    Many of the world’s leading authorities on preventing amputations and salvaging limbs will gather at the first International Summit on Lower Extremity Peripheral Vascular Disease and Critical Limb Ischemia, October 26-27, 2005, at the Hotel InterContinental, Miami, Fla. The inaugural CLI Summit will be held in conjunction with New Cardiovascular Horizons, now in its fifth year and one of North America’s largest multidisciplinary cardiovascular conferences. Originally scheduled to be held in New Orleans, the conference was moved to Miami due to Hurricane Katrina.

    Critical limb ischemia (CLI) is a serious condition in which the feet and legs have poor circulation with reduced blood flow and lack of oxygen, resulting in lower extremity pain and open sores that do not heal, leading many times to gangrene and amputation. In the vast majority of cases, CLI is associated with advanced atherosclerotic disease and is more common among the elderly and in people with diabetes. In the US, approximately three quarters of a million people are thought to have CLI. Without aggressive treatment, about one-fourth of the patients will die and another one-third will have an amputation. With proper treatment, 90% of amputations can be avoided.

    Conference information and on-line registration are available on the New Cardiovascular Horizons, CLI Summit and Renaissance Summit web sites at https://www.newcvhorizons.com,https://www.CLIsummit.com, and https://www.Medical-renaissance.com.

Ostomy supply agreement reached

    Coloplast Corp. (Atlanta, Ga.) signed an agreement with MedAssets Supply Chain Systems (Alpharetta, Ga.) to supply ostomy products to MedAssets’ customers across the US. The new agreement expands the company’s ostomy assortment to include an innovative and complete line of products. These types of products continue to increase options for ostomy patients while maintaining cost-effective product solutions.

   For more information, call 770-281-8400 or email usrf@coloplast.com.