Conformis iTotal® CR Knee Replacement System Wins Silver in 2012 Medical Design Excellence Awards
iTotal CR Recognized as One of the Most Innovative New Medical Devices
Burlington, Mass. – May 25, 2012 – Privately-held Conformis, Inc. today announced that its iTotal® CR Knee Replacement System has been awarded Silver in the “Implant and Tissue-Replacement Products” category of the 2012 Medical Design Excellence Awards (MDEA) competition. The MDEA is the industry’s premier competition recognizing significant advances in medical product design and engineering that improve the quality of healthcare delivery and accessibility. With its 2009 win for the iUni® and iDuo® resurfacing implants, the MDEA has now recognized the design excellence of the full line of Conformis personalized knee implants.
The iTotal is the only total knee replacement system that offers true patient-specific implants and instrumentation, with unique advantages compared to traditional knee replacements. Traditional knee replacements use a limited range of off-the-shelf sizes and shapes, requiring a surgeon to make any necessary adjustments during the operation. With iTotal, the process starts well before the surgery using advanced 3D imaging technology to create implants and instrumentation designed to achieve precise anatomic fit and preserve more of the patient’s anatomy than a standard total knee replacement. In addition, iTotal preserves the patient’s natural curvature with the promise of an improved kinematic, functional result.
“We are incredibly pleased to be the recipient of this prestigious award,” said Conformis President and CEO Philipp Lang, MD. “We set out to change the practice of orthopedics with a belief in the clinical importance of taking a patient-specific approach and armed with a technology to achieve that. The recognition for our new iTotal CR Knee Replacement Systemcontinues to highlight the unparalleled advantages our technology can deliver to orthopedics.”
In addition to the design of the system, the MDEA panel also considers the impact of design choices on the cost effectiveness of manufacturing and healthcare delivery. The iTotal system is delivered as an efficient, single use kit including both the customized implants and disposable instruments. Conformis incorporates the latest advances in design and digital manufacturing technology to provide a just in time delivery model, providing hospitals with opportunities for savings on inventory management, sterilization and operating room set up and turnover.
“It’s been exciting to be a part of this pioneering approach to knee replacement” said Greg Martin, MD, Medical Director of the Orthopedics Institute at JFK Medical Center in Florida. “For the first time, I can provide patients with a truly anatomic solution that mimics the shape of their native knee. My patients are noticeably happier with the iTotal than with the results of their traditional total knee replacements.”
This award comes just after the one-year anniversary of the first total knee replacement procedure using the iTotal, which took place on May 16, 2011. The iTotal, currently available to a limited group of trained surgeons, will go into broad launch later this year.
For more information, visit www.conformis.com.
About Conformis, Inc.
Conformis, Inc. is a privately-held company that develops and commercializes medical devices for osteoarthritis treatment and joint damage. Its proprietary intellectual property includes more than 300 patents and patent applications in the areas of imaging software, image processing, implant design, surgical techniques, instrumentation, and manufacturing, spanning knee, hip, shoulder, spine, and small joints. Conformis knee implants and instrumentation are designed to address all stages of osteoarthritis, the most common reason for knee replacement surgery. All devices have been cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration for marketing in the US. In 2009, Conformis was named a winner of the Medical Design Excellence Awards for its iUni and iDuo resurfacing implants. In 2011, Conformis received the American Technology Award for innovation with its iTotal CR product. Follow Conformis on Twitter at@Conformis and become a fan on Facebook.
About Medical Design Excellence Awards
Sponsored by MD+DI and organized by UBM Canon, the MDEA competition is the premier awards program for the medical technology community. It recognizes the achievements of medical device manufacturers, their suppliers, and the many people behind the scenes – engineers, scientists, designers, and clinicians – who are responsible for the groundbreaking innovations that are changing the face of healthcare. For more information on the Medical Design Excellence Awards, visithttp://www.mdeawards.com/, or e-mail mdea@ubm.com.