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June 19, 2023

Millar Steers PV Loop Technology and Customers into the Future by Combining Market Leading Catheter Solutions with Transonic Scisense Systems

Transonic Scisense has made the difficult decision to close their doors, effective June 16, 2023. Our strategic partner, Millar, has agreed to engineer replacement solutions for existing Scisense customers so that researchers worldwide can access optimal solutions for pressure measurements and pressure-volume (PV) loops. Transonic has entrusted ADInstruments, as Millar’s exclusive global distributor, to provide ongoing support for their valued customers.

Read the full press release here.

 

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July 1, 2021

Transonic Names Miriam Tenorio President and CEO

Transonic is pleased to announce that Miriam Tenorio has been appointed President and CEO of the Transonic family of companies, effective July 1, 2021.  Miriam is succeeding the founder of Transonic Systems Inc., Cornelis (Cor) Drost, who has served as President and CEO since the company’s inception in 1983. Cor will remain actively involved in the company as Chief Technology Officer, a position to which he can bring his core strength, biomedical ultrasound engineering innovation. Tim Callahan will assume some of Miriam’s previous marketing responsibilities in his new role as Director of Clinical Sales & Marketing.

 

Miriam moves into her new leadership position from Vice President of Marketing, a post that she has held for the past several years and will maintain going forward. During her tenure as Marketing VP, Miriam initiated and directed numerous significant corporate changes. First was a full company rebranding initiative. This was followed by a redirection of our worldwide outbound marketing methods to include new inbound and digital marketing initiatives. She also led the user needs-driven development of two next-generation products and implemented intense marketing involvement in the next-generation development plans of the future meter lines. Most recently, Miriam has tackled challenging regulatory and quality system updates to support the new EU MDR regulations and FDA new product approval process.

 

This leadership change and repositioning also comes at a momentous time in the company’s history. Transonic realized record sales in FY2021, despite COVID-19 hardships. During the pandemic, Transonic remained open as an essential business, and through implementation of strict COVID prevention protocols, is proud to report that there has not been any employee to employee transmission of the virus at Transonic’s Ithaca headquarters. The Transonic team met the pandemic with incredible dedication and a rapid switch to virtual marketing, sales, and customer support initiatives that allowed Transonic users to receive their usual hallmark Transonic support. 

 

Miriam shared, “I am incredibly proud of the Transonic team for meeting the challenges of the pandemic, and for embracing change over the last few years. I am also very honored to be chosen to lead Transonic into the future; I have some big shoes to fill as Cor has been the heart and soul of Transonic since its inception. My focus will be on reinforcing Transonic’s mission, “To Advance Meaningful Measurements” and on continuing to build a solid foundation so that we can meet the needs of the future. We have always been a company that redefines paradigms…we bring new measurements solutions to a wide variety of disparate markets that are all the first of their kind. We know that at the end of the day, our customer’s work and results are what matters the most. I look forward to maintaining the core values that have made Transonic what it is today, and adding support and focus to help us continue to serve our customers and partners for the coming decades.”

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August 21, 2020

Transonic ELSA Monitor Enhances ECMO Treatment of COVID-19 Patients with Respiratory Failure

“Transonic's ELSA monitor quantitatively measures oxygenator clotting which we implemented with our COVID-19 ECMO patients to improve our bedside decision making in circuit component change-outs." Patrick Weerwind, perfusionist, Maastricht University Hospital, Maastricht, The Netherlands

 

As coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) continues its deadly sweep across the globe, the role of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) in the management of severely ill patients with COVID-19 who have developed acute respiratory symptoms continues to increase. 

 

As of August 20, 2020, the global population of COVID-19 patients supported with ECMO stood at 2285, 55% (89 of 1604) of whom were discharged home alive. Most of the COVID-19 patients treated with ECMO (1464) were in North America with 541 in Europe, 48 in the Asia Pacific and 104 in Latin America.  

 

The increasing number of COVID-19 patients being treated with ECMO is propelling inquiries from every corner of the globe about how the ELSA Monitor provides clinicians with vital quantitative information to maximize ECMO efficiency. 

 

Not only can oxygenator clotting be quantified with the ELSA Monitor to quantify early oxygenator clot formation and create a wider window of opportunity to perform oxygenator change-outs when needed, but the percentage recirculation can be quantified. Knowing recirculation helps an intensivist adjust cannula position and pump flow to optimize treatment as well as identify low cardiac output due to hypovolemia or heart failure. Clinicians also learn that by knowing actual delivered flow they can verify circuit flows, determine flows in bridges or shunts, determine the optimal pump flow setting for any cannula or configuration, and identify tubing flow restrictions that might cause hemolysis or increase pressure within the circuit.

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July 9, 2020

Two European Companies Added to Transonic Distribution Network

In recent months two new European distributor organizations have signed on to distribute Transonic flow metering products in Europe. They are: free life medical GmbH which will distribute Transonic surgical and mechanical circulatory support products in Germany, and SofMedica for Transonic product sales in Romania, Greece, Bulgaria & Cyprus.

 

Transonic International Distribution Manager Wilfred van der Velde notes, “In building a respected and profitable business, one wants to work with people with passion and commitment, and with companies who are willing to collaborate and speak the same language as the creators of the technology we sell.” Both free life medical GmbH and SofMedica meet these high standards.

 

free life medical GmbH: Founded in 2004 by Jan and Martin Hildinger, whose combined experience in cardiac surgery spans 30 years, free life medical GmbH is a future-oriented and dynamic family-owned business. Its principal business is cannulas for cardiac surgery and ECMO, customized tubing packs, and components for hemodialysis.

 

The company has management, customer service and production facilities in Aachen, near the border triangle of Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. free life medical has 17 employees. In addition to Martin Hildinger, managing director, and Rigobert Schnur, sales manager, the company has three sales representatives, seven employees engaged in the production of tubing sets, customer and technical personnel.

 

Sofmedica companies employ more than 130 healthcare-related professionals. By bringing the latest innovative technologies and products to healthcare professionals in several countries, they provide thousands of patients with access to sophisticated medical treatment.

 

Transonic proudly welcomes both free life medical GmbH and SofMedica to the Transonic distribution family as highly valued partners who will distribute Transonic’s gold standard products in Germany and southeastern Europe.

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May 28, 2020

German Clinicians Find Intraoperative Measurements a Useful Tool to Predict Maturation in AV Fistulas

Clinicians from the University Hospital in Essen, Germany investigated the value of intraoperative blood flow measurements for immediate correction and prediction for early failure or long-term patency of newly created radiocephalic fistulas in patients receiving chronic hemodialysis.

 

Their study included 89 patients. Intraoperative flow measurements were performed on the outflow cephalic vein 5-10 mm distal to the radiocephalic anastomosis using 3-6 mm Transonic Flowprobes 5-10 min after creation of the arteriovenous (AV) anastomosis. Patients were assigned into one of two groups depending on their post-anastomotic fistula flows: 1) with high flow (> 200 mL/min) and 2) low flow (< 200 mL/min). They were then assessed clinically and with ultrasound every three months postoperatively during an observation period ranging from three months to three years.

 

The 1-year primary and secondary patency rates of patients were significantly higher in the high-flow group than in the low-flow group. From their data the clinicians concluded that intraoperative measurement of blood flow can be determined with relative ease and accuracy in vascular access surgery and is a useful tool to predict the outcome of maturation in autologous AV fistulas. The information is more objective and reliable than obtained by physical examination alone, and with this method, technical problems can be detected and corrected intraoperatively before closure of the site.

 

Reference:

Cyrek AE, Bernheim J, Juntermanns B, Husen P, Pacha A, Hoffmann JN. Intraoperative use of transit time flow measurement improves patency of newly created radiocephalic arteriovenous fistulas in patients requiring hemodialysis [published online ahead of print, 2020 May 7]. J Vasc Access. 2020;1129729820916561. (Transonic Reference # VA11793AH)

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May 15, 2020

Transonic Continues to Serve Customers While Implementing Safe Practices during COVID-19 Pandemic

“We deeply appreciate the efforts of Transonic’s staff. Although we know that New York State has been in a serious situation due to COVID-19 and most of the companies have been closed, you are working hard. In addition to manufacturing, we know that production cannot be working without back-office, QA, R&D, and sales departments, and thanks to those departments. Because we can receive good products in short delivery time, we can make our products and help our customers save patients.”

 

So began an email from a more than satisfied Transonic customer, who despite the restrictions imposed by the Coronavirus, received their product in record time. This didn’t happen without the flexibility and creativity of Transonic administration and employees who, as soon as the pandemic struck in March, implemented the safety precautions necessary to continue as an essential medical product manufacturing facility. The work force was divided into two shifts, 7 am to 3 pm and 3 pm to midnight; those in the most vulnerable group were mandated and enabled to work from home; reusable masks were provided to all employees, social distancing was implemented and personal benefit time extended. The result was that Transonic was able to continue to fill product orders to satisfy their customers’ needs.

 

From the onset of the pandemic, the first and number one priority of Transonic management, headed by Transonic founder Cor Drost, was the health, safety and welfare of every Transonic employee and their families. This was reiterated in every email. Fortunately, Transonic is located in the beautiful rural Finger Lakes region of New York State, known for its colleges and universities (the closest being Cornell, just a few miles away) and vineyards. Four hours distant from the New York city metropolitan area, the coronavirus, while present, has not exacted a great toil, to date. 

 

Now, under the sage, science-driven and transparent leadership of New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo, this region is slated to partially reopen on May 15thas part of a detailed phased reopening process. In response, Transonic management met to re-assess Transonic’s returning to a single shift schedule while ensuring that everyone stays safe. Building air handling was assessed and found it to be excellent; dividers are being added between work stations; reminder signage is being augmented; and new cafeteria schedules are being implemented to adhere to social distancing guidelines, to name a few of the additional safety precautions. With these measures in place, Transonic will return to a single shift on Monday, May 18thin order to continue to serve its customers with the products they trust to “make meaningful measurements.” 

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April 27, 2020

Increased Clotting in Severe Covid-19 Patients Complicates ECMO Treatment

Doctors in China, the Netherlands and the United States have collectively published reports saying that they have seen an increase in blood clots in Covid-19 patients. This phenomenon is seen more commonly in the most serious Covid-19 cases, including patients requiring extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) support for acute respiratory distress syndrome.

The authors of a new publication in the Journal of Thrombosis and Hematology identify Covid-19 coagulopathy as a hallmark sign of the disease’s severity. They found that 71.4% of patients who died of the disease met disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) criteria, a condition that affects the body’s clotting capability. Additionally, the study identifies these patients as having predominately pro-thrombotic DIC with high venous thromboembolism rates. Doctors are utilizing heparin and tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) for anticoagulation in hopes of eliminating or reducing the number of clots. The mechanism of how the virus causes blood clots remains uncertain. Physicians continue to collect information and share experiences to improve outcomes and patient care throughout this pandemic. However, more official testing needs to be performed to better understand treatment options.

 

Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) is one therapy utilized to treat the sickest Covid-19 patients. It is standard practice for ECMO patients to be systemically anticoagulated to eliminate clots within the ECMO circuit. However, Covid-19 patients are proving difficult to manage. For example, to date, eight Covid-19 patients have been supported with ECMO at Maastricht University Medical Center in Maastricht, Netherlands. All eight have been difficult to fully anticoagulate and limit the clot burden within the ECMO circuit. The clinical perfusionists at Maastricht University Medical Center, explained that their team routinely uses the Transonic’s ELSA Monitor to assess clotting within the oxygenator, the lungs of the ECMO system. 

 

Transonic’s ELSA Monitor quantifies clot burden within the oxygenator with a small volume saline injection. Early detection and trending of clot formation provides a wider window of opportunity to perform oxygenator change-outs. In this group of patients, whose clotting factors are harshly abnormal, the ELSA adds valuable trending measures to warn clinicians of the need for possible oxygenator change-out. On a current patient, the ECMO  team at Maastricht University Medical Center is preparing for an ECMO circuit change-out for the 5th time, which is considerably higher than is customary for non-Covid-19 ECMO patients.

 

Reference:

[1] Wang J, Hajizadeh N, Moore EE, et al. Tissue Plasminogen Activator (tPA) Treatment for COVID-19 Associated Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS): A Case Series [published online ahead of print, 2020 Apr 8]. J Thromb Haemost. 2020;10.1111/jth.14828. doi:10.1111/jth.14828. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32267998

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April 8, 2020

Ithaca Sends Healthcare Professionals to NYC on COVID-19 Humanitarian Mission

In any crisis there are those that run, not away from the struggle, but toward it. We normally call these individuals heroes. Today we call them doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals,” proclaimed Dr. Martin Stallone, President & CEO of Cayuga Health Medical Center in Ithaca, April 8th in his send-off message to 50 healthcare professionals who filled two Cornell University buses to travel to NYC to assist in treating COVID-19 pandemic patients.

With less than a day’s notice of the mission, the Ithaca community turned out in droves to send them off, lining the route out of town with posters of encouragement and cheers of well wishes. “It was heart wrenching,” reported one choked-up bystander as she watched the buses, escorted by police and emergency vehicles, leave the relative safety of upstate New York to travel four hours into a COVID-19 war zone at Columbia Presbyterian, Cornell Weill Medical Center in Manhattan.

“We will continue to do what it takes to fight this epidemic and meet the healthcare needs of our community and beyond,” said Dr. Stallone in his send-off remarks. This is the first time an upstate community hospital has sent volunteers on this type of mission. Hopefully it will serve as a model for other hospitals.

“We may be a small community, but our employees have huge hearts and we know that we can step up and help out in a big way.” Cornell University President Martha E. Pollack added, “These volunteers, and all of the healthcare workers at the forefront of this pandemic, are acting with courage and compassion in a situation that is both unprecedented and incredibly challenging.” Since its inception in 1983, Transonic has enjoyed a close connection with Cornell University where its core technology transit-time ultrasound was developed by Transonic President Cor Drost. Fruitful scientific collaborations between Transonic and Cornell continue to this day. Many of the Transonic’s employees live in the city of Ithaca proper and its surrounding communities.

“This exemplifies one of the many instances when I am incredibly proud of our Ithaca community,” said Miriam Tenorio, Transonic VP of Marketing. “We thank today’s heroes, our deployed healthcare professionals, and wish them God’s speed. May they return home to their families, friends and community healthy and safe.”

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April 1, 2020

University Hospital, Padua, Italy Buys ELSA Monitor to Combat COVID-19

Shortly after the COVID-19 virus began its lightning spread around the globe in February, 2020, Transonic Surgical Marketing Manager Tim Callahan was contacted by Transonic’s longtime Italian distributor Iatrotek srl saying that the University Hospital in Padua wanted to purchase an ELSA Monitor in order to optimize their extracorporeal membrane oxygenation therapy (ECMO) for persons suffering severe respiratory distress.

The sale was initiated by Chief Professor Gino Gerosa, President of the Italian Society of Cardiovascular Surgery (SICCH) and Professor Federico Rea of the Cardiothoracic/Transplant Department of the University Hospital. The ELSA sale for this emergency was expedited by both Iatrotek srl and Transonic which delivered a monitor to the enduser in record time.

Now in the hands of the hospital’s dedicated and capable perfusionist team led by Dott. Fabio Zanella, the ELSA will help treat ECMO patients by noninvasively detecting and quantifying recirculation to help ensure oxygen delivery. Recirculation identification provides feedback on cannula(s) placement, fluid status and cardiac function. In addition, clot volume within the oxygenator can be quantified and trended by the ELSA Monitor for all ECMO patients. These quantitative measurements eliminate the use of subjective parameters from the bedside and help guide intensive care staff to ensure the best intervention practices. In short, the ELSA Monitor provides the clinician with a quantitative measurement tool to optimize ECMO therapy in all ECMO patients.

Padua, a city of 210,000 population, located in the Veneto province, is one of the three regions in northern Italy that are designated red zones for COVID-19. The three regions are Lombardy (Milan); Veneto (Venice) and Emilia Romagna (Bologna). These are the regions where the disease caught a strangle hold in the middle of February and where they are experiencing the highest number of persons testing positive for the virus, deaths from the disease and restrictions. To date, Italy has the third highest number of cases of COVID-19 after the US and China, numbering at the end of March over 80,000, along with over eight thousand deaths.

University Hospital of Padua is one of the most prestigious hospitals in Italy. Since the early fifteenth century, the hospital has been associated with the city’s renown University of Padua, established in 1222 and one of the most ancient medical schools in Europe. The famous astronomer, physicist and engineer Galileo Galilei was named Professor of Mathematics at the University of Padua in 1592. Now managed by the National Healthcare Trust, the University Hospital combines healthcare, teaching and research. In recent years, Venice-based Iatrotek srl, a medical device distributor, has been instrumental in providing departments of the hospital, especially neurosurgery, with the benefits of Transonic flow measurement capabilities.

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March 26, 2020

Ithaca, NY Biotech Firm Provides Critical Measures for COVID-19 Patients

As the Covid-19 flu pandemic continues to claim the lives of thousands, medical teams around the globe are scrambling to use extreme measures to save their patients experiencing acute respiratory failure (ARDS). Veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VV ECMO) is one such measure. It is initiated to save a patient by drastically improving oxygen delivery to the body and to limit lung injury.

The new ELSA Monitor by Transonic provides critical data to help fine-tune ECMO therapy which allows clinicians to improve their patient’s outcomes. The ELSA Monitor tells the exact amount of blood flow that is being delivered to the patient and how much is being recirculated. Moreover, it can quantify clotting in the oxygenator. Armed with this crucial information, staff can then optimize VV ECMO therapy to save patients. 

 

The ELSA Monitor expands Transonic’s presence in hospital departments where gold standard Transonic flow measurement technology is already used during lifesaving cardiac, transplant and neurosurgeries. Its Flowsensors are used to verify flow in CP bypass (heart-lung) machines and other types of mechanical circulatory support used to save patients.  

 

Transonic Vice-President Miriam Tenorio reflects, “Now, particularly amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, we are proud to see our flow measurement devices providing physicians the measurements they need to help save their patient’s lives. Aside from our own medical devices, our flow measurement is an integral component inside many other medical devices that will be critical during this pandemic. We are committed to doing our best to keep our doors open in order to continue to supply vital technology to help physicians and Covid-19 patients”.  

 

Ithaca-based Transonic Systems is the global leader in biomedical flow measurement technology. Transonic’s founder, Cor Drost pioneered transit-time flow measurement technology over 35 years ago while at Cornell University. Since then, Transonic Systems devices have been used for groundbreaking laboratory research discoveries, to provide quantitative flow measurements during cardiac, vascular, transplant and neurosurgeries, ECMO, angioplasty, hemodialysis and are integral in many medical devices manufactured by other innovative companies. 

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February 28, 2020

Researchers Develop Model to Study Ischemia-reperfusion Injury

Through cutting edge translational research, Jesús Usón Minimally Invasive Surgery Centre in Caceras, Spain, a multidisciplinary institution providing innovation and research in the health sciences, bridges the gap between research and clinical.  

Researchers from the institution’s Dept. of Microsurgery, and the Stem Cell Therapy Unit, led by Alberto Ballestin, recently developed an innovative new model for studying the pathophysiology of ischemia-reperfusion injury in reconstructive microsurgery (see link below). Microsurgical reconstructions are used clinically to address complex tissue defects, to replant amputations and to perform reconstruction after various cancer treatments, burns, etc. This new model will allow the evaluation of various techniques and agents that could counteract the damage caused by ischemia in these critical surgeries.

Transonic’s transit-time flow measurement, utilized in the new model, will be critical in the study of these treatment techniques and pathways. Flow measurements are clearly an integral component in the study of flow-limiting conditions such as ischemia and in confirming anastomotic patency and reperfusion. 

 

Reference:

Ballestín, Alberto et al. “Ischemia-reperfusion injury in a rat microvascular skin free flap model: A histological, genetic, and blood flow study.” PloS one vol. 13,12 e0209624. 27 Dec. 2018, doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0209624

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January 29, 2020

American Physiological Society Bestows Prestigious APSselect Award on Elegant Research Study

The conscious canine study co-authored by Transonic’s Danielle Senador with Dr. Donal O’Leary and RS Augustyniak was chosen by the American Physiological Society for its scientific rigor. A muscle reflex (metabaroreflex) occurs when limbs do not receive sufficient perfusion during exercise. Its investigation requires a series of surgeries in each animal in order to implant of multiple Flowprobes and pressure transducers.

Before she joined Transonic in May 2018, Danielle was a post-doc at Wayne State University School of Medicine, where she worked in the laboratory of Dr. Donal O’Leary, one of Transonic’s long-time collaborators who has been using Transonic research equipment for 30 years. There, Danielle honed her surgical skills while implanting multiple Flowprobes and pressure transducers in an ongoing series of heart failure and renal hypertension exercise studies.

The APSselect study required three separate surgeries:

  1. To implant a Transonic 20 PAU Flowprobe around the ascending aorta to measure cardiac output;
  2. To implant a 10 PAU Flowprobe around the terminal aorta to measure hind limb blood flow. Then, to position two perivascular hydraulic occluders around the terminal aorta distal to the Flowprobe for graded reduction of hind limb blood flow, and to introduce a 19 G catheter through a ligated lumbar artery to measure arterial pressure;
  3. To introduce a catheter into the jugular vein to measure venous pressure.  Once the animals had fully recovered from the surgeries, the planned experiments were carried out.
Reference:

O’Leary DS, Senador D, Augustyniak RA, “Muscle metaboreflex- induced central blood volume mobilization in heart failure,” Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2019 May 1;316(5):H1047-H1052.

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January 18, 2017

Nipro Corporation and Transonic Systems announce the formation of a Joint Venture

Nipro Corporation (Osaka, Japan) and Transonic Systems Inc. (New York, USA) announced the formation of a Joint Venture (JV) under which Nipro will receive exclusive marketing and sales rights for all non-OEM Transonic products in Japan. As partners for more than a decade to establish best practices for hemodialysis patients in Japan, the new Nipro - Transonic JV is a natural next step to advance best practices and further innovation in other medical disciplines in Japan. The JV will provide a mission-critical link between Transonic’s operations in the USA and will provide product import, registration and servicing of all Transonic products in Japan. Nipro’s superior marketing, sales and customer support network will be the exclusive distribution channel, both for existing Transonic products as well as to introduce Transonic’s more innovative technologies that have not yet been imported into Japan.

Mr. Cornelis Drost, CEO of Transonic Systems Inc. stated: “Nipro has been our distribution partner for our hemodialysis monitor since 2003 and has gained our immense respect through their commitment to introduce what was then a novel patient monitor technology, and make it the Japanese standard of care. Through our partnership with Nipro, our successes in the US and EU with more such innovator products in the microsurgical, ECMO, bioprocess, critical care and research telemetry fields will be transplanted into Japan and made the new standard of care.”

Mr. Toshiaki Masuda, Executive Director of Nipro Corporation added: “This joint venture is a desirable fit for both companies, which have the complimentary expertise for technologies, product development and marketing. Transonic’s products have a good potential in cardiovascular surgery and other surgical fields as well as research and bioprocess areas, and we are looking forward to market those products in Japan in addition to the hemodialysis monitor“

Both Nipro and Transonic look forward to further realize their synergies in their respective and similar Missions – to Provide Innovative and Patient-oriented Solutions for Healthier Lives, and to Advance Meaningful Measurements -- through this exciting Joint Venture.

Nipro Corporation (Osaka, Japan; www.nipro.co.jp) is a world leading manufacturer of medical products in the various fields such as renal, intervention and anesthesiology, injection and infusion, cardiopulmonary and diabetes, etc. Committed to delivering innovative, high quality and value-added solutions to improve patient care, the company develops cutting-edge products that are safe for the medical provider and manufactured to alleviate the discomfort of the patient. Established in 1954, Nipro employs more than 25,000 team members globally and specializes in medical, pharmaceutical and pharma packaging products.

The Transonic Systems Inc (Ithaca NY; www.transonic.com,) and its sister companies (together: Measurement Innovations Corporation) have pioneered novel ultrasound and indicator dilution flow measurement technologies for life sciences applications that have since become worldwide standards of care in surgical, hemodialysis, cardiovascular and biomedical research. Established in 1983 as an offspring of Cornell University, the company employs around 150 team members and has divisions in USA, Canada, Holland, Taiwan and Japan.

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August 9, 2016

A Treatment to Avoid "Arm Swelling" After Breast Cancer Surgery

A multi-disciplinary team from Italy developed an approach to pro-actively reduce lymphedema in patients undergoing breast cancer surgery. Among the first in Northern Italy to implement the latest microsurgical techniques, a pool of specialists working at Ospedale dell’Angelo, Mestre is working to solve the problem of arm lymphedema, one of the most common problems arising in women after breast surgery.

 
"Lymphedema is an accumulation of lymphatic fluid” explains Guido Papaccio, head of the Breast Unit at the12 Veneziana local health authority. “It is caused by blockage of the lymph vessels resulting in a build up of fluid in a limb. Unfortunately it is common side-effect of breast cancer surgery, with arm swelling arising after the operation: up to 20% of women who have undergone axillary lymph node removal experience severe lymphedema in the ten years following surgery. So women who have solved the problem of cancer thanks to surgery are then faced with debilitating arm swelling that may appear years after the operation."
 
Lymphedema may also occur in the legs in other illnesses. The condition is traditionally treated by massage, lymph drainage and bandaging: the aim is to the curb and reduce the limb swelling, reducing the lymphedema by mechanically stimulating the lymph circulation.
 
Instead, Dr Papaccio’s Breast Unit in Mestre opted to work in partnership with lymphedema microsurgery specialists at the Vascular Surgery Unit. Together they have devised a therapeutic plan to treat and even prevent the formation of lymphedema. “We tackle blocked lymph vessels or lymph node dissection”, explains surgeon Alessandro Busetto, “by inserting fully-fledged by-passes, surgically constructing alternative lymphatic pathways. We can do this to treat a blocked vessel when lymphedema has already occurred. But the challenge we have now overcome is prevention, constructing by-passes around any vessels that may become blocked in the future."
 
At Ospedale dell’Angelo, specialists make an in-depth analysis of the lymphatic pathways in selected patients predisposed to the risk of lymphedema, identifying critical points before they undergo breast surgery. During the operation, the lymphatic vascular surgeon assists the cancer team. While the cancer surgeons remove the tumor, the vascular specialist prepares and constructs alternative lymphatic pathways with the by-passes to prevent lymph buildup in case the original lymphatic pathway should become blocked in years to come.
 
The partnership between the Breast Unit and Lymphatic Surgery at Ospedale dell’Angelo has now been made permanent and consolidated within the Department of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery at the12 Veneziana local health authority: "We shall present the ‘LI.VE Venice Lymphology scheme to the public in October during the clinical lymphology symposium” explains Dr Vittorio Dorrucci. “In July we successfully performed the sixth structured operation as part of this clinical partnership and are among the first to gain this experience. At the same time, the pre and postoperative protocols agreed with the patients associations and voluntary organizations are already up and running. These are essential for preliminary work to achieve results. This scheme sees the launch of a new clinical practice which is a step ahead in the care of lymphedema, in particular care and support for women with breast cancer."
 
Translated from VeneziaToday
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June 24, 2015

Intraoperative Cerebrovascular Flow Measurement Showcased in Video Protocol

Two aneurysm clipping surgical protocol videos by were released by Drs. Hage & Charbel. They can be found on the AANS Neurosurgery channel of YouTube for viewing. The first videos features the Transonic Cerebrovascular Flowprobe to check the patency of the anastomosis by assuring good blood flow. During the second video, flow is assessed during the clipping process to assure that good flow is maintained.

 

Clipping of a ruptured anterior communicating artery aneurysm with right A1-A2 sectioning and reanastomosis


This YouTube video demonstrates the microsurgical clipping of clipping of a previously coiled and ruptured anterior communicating artery aneurysm. Initial clipping with a fenestrated clip occluded the flow in the right A2. After temporary clipping of both A1 and A2 vessels, they cut the right A1 and A2, clipped the aneurysm with a straight clip while flow was preserved in the left A1 and A2. Then an reanastomosis of the right A1-A2, end to end, was performed. This strategy allowed for complete obliteration of the aneurysm while preserving the flow in all four vessels.


Reference:

Hage ZA, Charbel FT, “Clipping of a ruptured anterior communicating artery aneurysm with right A1-A2 sectioning and reanastomosis,” Neurosurg Focus. 2015 Jul;39 Video Suppl 1:V10



Clipping of bilateral MCA aneurysms and a coiled ACOM aneurysm through a modified lateral supraorbital craniotomy


This YouTube video demonstrates Dr. Charbel's microsurgical clipping of three aneurysms: a left middle cerebral artery (MCA) aneurysm performed through a modified right lateral supraorbital craniotomy, a previously coiled anterior communicating (ACOM) artery aneurysm, and a bilobed right MCA aneurysm.

The video first shows the identification and clipping of the left MCA aneurysm. Then, the ACOM aneurysm is clipped following multiple clip repositioning based on Transonic flow measurements. Finally, the right MCA aneurysm is then identified and each lobe is clipped separately.

Reference:

Hage ZA, Charbel FT, "Clipping of bilateral MCA aneurysms and a coiled ACOM aneurysm through a modified lateral supraorbital craniotomy." Neurosurg Focus. 2015 Jan;38(VideoSuppl1):Video19.

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March 31, 2015

LVAD patients to have greater mobility and peace of mind through Transonic and ReliantHeart’s True Flow collaboration for the HeartAssist5®

The next generation of groundbreaking LVAD's is on it's way...

ReliantHeart, Inc., an innovative supplier of advanced mechanical circulatory assist technologies, and Transonic, a supplier of precision transit-time flow measurement solutions, are collaborating on a miniature flow board that will greatly improve the efficiency of the HeartAssist5® Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD). This will enable LVAD patients to experience greater mobility and peace of mind.

The Transonic flow sensor, embedded with the miniature flow board, will draw 1/6th of the power required by earlier flow board and will allow the HeartAssist5® to be compatible with a Transcutaneous Energy Transfer system (TET). This groundbreaking innovation allows for the LVAD patient to be able to disconnect from an external power source for wireless mobility as well as to be monitored remotely.

ReliantHeart’s COO Tony Williams comments, “It is essential that an implantable LVAD be very power efficient to allow a person an energetic human experience when untethered from the TET system. The internal battery must be small and store ample power for at least four hours for the TET system to be appealing.”



According to Rodger Ford, CEO of ReliantHeart, “All other competing LVADs calculate flow as a derivative of pump speed and power consumption, and the calculated flow is seldom correct. True Flow management is essential to reducing adverse events and can be monitored 24/7 by the patient’s clinician. With True Flow, if there is any drop in flow below a minimum threshold, the patient can be notified immediately. Early warning and intervention is a key to improving LVAD patient outcomes.”



Transonic flow devices are no stranger to innovation applications. They are also found in heart-lung machines, various external blood pumps, organ preservation devices and infusion systems.

Doug Collins, Transonic’s OEM Product Manager comments, “Incorporation of our flow measurement in the TET-ready HA5 is an exciting step for us that brings us full circle in our corporate history. Transonic’s Founder, Cornelis Drost came from the Netherlands to the USA on the invitation of Dr. Yukihiko Nose, to design an ultrasonic flow sensor for the artificial heart that was being developed in the early ‘70’s. It is indeed gratifying to be involved with a product that so closely aligns with Dr. Nose’s project over 40 years ago. It was a visionary project then and is still a visionary project now. Reliant Heart is really charting the course for the future VADs.”

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March 23, 2015

Transonic Systems and EMKA Technologies Announce Distribution Expansion

Transonic is pleased to announce an extended cooperation agreement with Emka Technologies (Paris, France) to distribute Transonic Scisense pressure and pressure volume products. This expands the scope of Emka's current distribution of Transonic's flow measurement products within France to include Transonic Scisense products in the rest of the world outside of the USA. Transonic Scisense’s unique Admittance Pressure-Volume measurements provide the most comprehensive hemodynamic data for the study of Cardiac Function and contractility in heart failure studies.

The Transonic family of companies is excited about its expanded partnership with Emka Technologies. Andrew Bloom, Transonic vice-president for worldwide sales notes, The distribution of the Transonic Scisense product line by Emka Technologies increases its offering throughout the world and advances the growth strategy for this product line.” He continues, “Transonic and Emka’s combined focus on the Scisense pressure and pressure-volume catheters and systems allows for a worldwide ramp up in product distribution and support”.

Jean-Gérard Napoléoni, CEO of Emka Scireq group confirms that “Transonic and Emka have worked together for to 20 years and this expanded scope of cooperation is very promising and will significantly strengthen our joint footprint on the cardio-vascular research market worldwide.”

For over three decades, Transonic has been offering quantitative data solutions to clinicians, researchers and specialty device manufacturers. The unprecedented resolution of Transonic products has made the Transonic name synonymous with gold standard diagnostic and research measurements.

Emka Technologies offers integrated hardware and software solutions for pharmacology, safety pharmacology and toxicology in the fields of cardio-vascular, respiratory and CNS research.

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