Ethicon Endo-Surgery Introduces HARMONIC ACE® 45 cm Curved Shears at ASMBS

CINCINNATI, June 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc. (EES), today introduced a new addition to its HARMONIC® line of surgical devices, the HARMONIC ACE® 45 cm Curved Shears. HARMONIC ACE® 45 cm, designed to extend the reach of surgeons for minimally invasive procedures involving obese patients, is 25 percent longer (or 9cm) than the standard length HARMONIC ACE® device. The additional length of the HARMONIC ACE® 45 cm enables surgeons to reach anatomy during procedures on obese patients while reducing the need to relocate trocars. The ACE® 45 cm also reduces the need to push down on patients' abdomens, enabling surgeons to rotate the jaws of the device without impacting the trocar.* The HARMONIC ACE® 45 cm, which is being introduced at the annual meeting of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS), is primarily intended for use in bariatric, general, colorectal and gynecologic laparoscopic surgeries for obese patients, including gastric bypass, sleeve gastrectomy, colectomy and hysterectomy.

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(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100621/CL24159 )

"The extended reach of the ACE® 45 cm ensures that I have the access I need for procedures on my obese patients, making it easier to reach anatomy with the same control I have on non-obese patients," said Rami E. Lutfi, MD, FACS, section chief of minimally invasive and bariatric surgery, Mercy Hospital and Medical Center and medical director, The Chicago Institute of Advanced Bariatrics, Saint Joseph Hospital. "Since more than 34 percent of the U.S. population is considered obese, and due to comorbidities associated with obesity and the greater likelihood of obese patients needing surgery, it is incredibly important that device manufacturers innovate for the needs of these patients to ensure they can get the same quality of care as all other patients."

With the HARMONIC ACE® 45 cm, surgeons will experience the same precision, efficiency and versatility they expect from the HARMONIC ACE® portfolio. In addition to the new ACE 45 cm Harmonic device, Ethicon Endo-Surgery also provides 45 cm advanced bipolar devices (ENSEAL®) with the additional length ideal for the obese patient population.

Ethicon Endo-Surgery provides a comprehensive portfolio of energy products to meet the unique needs of surgeons and individual patients. As the leading ultrasonic cutting and coagulating surgical device used in more than ten million surgical procedures worldwide, HARMONIC® allows precise application of ultrasonic energy in advanced laparoscopic and open procedures, and minimizes tissue damage to the patient.  The Ethicon Endo-Surgery Energy portfolio also includes the ENSEAL® advanced bipolar devices that give surgeons control in tissue, sealing larger vessels while minimizing tissue trauma. Using controlled temperature technology not available in any other bipolar device, ENSEAL® devices offer minimal thermal spread for simultaneously sealing and transecting large vessels up to and including 7 mm and tissue bundles.

About Ethicon Endo-Surgery

Ethicon Endo-Surgery develops and markets advanced medical devices for minimally invasive and open surgical procedures, focusing on procedure-enabling devices for the interventional diagnosis and treatment of conditions in general and bariatric surgery, as well as gastrointestinal health, gynecology and surgical oncology. More information can be found at www.ethiconendo.com.

*Compared to HARMONIC ACE® 36E.

SOURCE Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc.