Mitek Sports Medicine Launches Small Diameter Dual-Thread Suture Anchor And New PTRC Repair System

RAYNHAM, Mass., May 7, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Mitek Sports Medicine, a leading orthopaedics sports medicine company, announced the launch of the HEALIX™ 3.4mm Suture Anchor, the company's smallest dual-thread suture anchor for rotator cuff repair, and the launch of a new double-loaded minimally invasive partial thickness rotator cuff (PTRC) repair system, as part of its HEALIX TRANSTEND™ Implant System.

The HEALIX 3.4mm Suture Anchor
The HEALIX 3.4mm Suture Anchor is about 38 percent smaller than conventional suture anchors¹ and features dual-thread technology, which engages both cortical and cancellous bone for optimal strength.²

"The HEALIX 3.4mm anchor offers me the versatility of BR and PEEK options, and its small diameter enables more precise placement, and occupies less of the footprint than larger suture anchors," said Amir Moinfar, MD,* an orthopaedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist at Baltimore Washington Medical Center in Maryland. "However, despite its small size, the HEALIX 3.4mm anchor has the pullout characteristics needed for medial row fixation, and the double-loaded ORTHOCORD gives me the opportunity for a variety of spanning options for incorporating lateral fixation."

The implants are double loaded with ORTHOCORD^® High Strength Suture and are available in BIOCRYL^® RAPIDE^™ (BR) Biocomposite Material or radiolucent polyetheretherketone (PEEK).

The HEALIX TRANSTEND Implant System
The HEALIX TRANSTEND Implant System enables surgeons to repair a partially torn rotator cuff (PTRC) with optimal fixation strength and minimal trauma to surrounding intact tissue. This percutaneous system, which includes the PERCANNULA™ System and HEALIX TRANSTEND Anchors, maximizes procedural visualization and preserves the patient's natural anatomy.³ The HEALIX TRANSTEND Anchor features a dual- thread pattern and is available in three kinds of materials: BR, PEEK and Titanium (TI), and is preloaded with one or two strands of ORTHOCORD High Strength Suture.

According to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), in 2008, about two million people in the United States visited their doctors because of a rotator cuff problem.⁴

About Mitek Sports Medicine
At Mitek Sports Medicine, we are passionate about getting patients back to their passion. As a global leader in orthopaedic sports medicine, we develop minimally invasive devices and non surgical products used in the treatment of joint injuries related to sports and physical activity, as well as degenerative tissue conditions. DePuy Synthes Mitek Sports Medicine is part of the DePuy Synthes Companies of Johnson & Johnson, the largest provider of orthopaedic and neurological solutions in the world. For more information visit, www.depuysynthes.com.

DePuy Synthes Mitek Sports Medicine is a division of DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc.
*Consultant to Mitek Sports Medicine

¹ IMS Health Incorporated, Hospital Claims database
² Data on file, Mitek Sports Medicine
³ Mitek Sports Medicine Value Analysis Brief -- HEALIX TRANSTEND™ Implant System, CA7998
⁴ American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. 2011. "Rotator Cuff Tear" Information published online and accessed April 2013 at http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00064
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SOURCE Mitek Sports Medicine