Today Covidien is launching a spine sealant in the United States. What’s significant about this sealant, which seals the dural membrane during spine surgeries, is that it’s the first product of its kind approved by FDA. Out of the almost 1.5 million spine procedures performed annually in the United States, about 10% require dural repair and sealing. (The dural membrane is the outermost membrane on the brain and spinal cord.) The sealant is made of a synthetic hydrogel that adheres to tissue and is absorbed by the body.
“DuraSeal is a great example of how we develop solutions at Covidien,” says Michael Tarnoff, MD, Coviden’s chief medical affairs officer in the surgical devices division. “We observe the challenges that surgeons face in the operating room and work with the medical community to come up with innovative products that may optimize patient outcomes, can improve healthcare economics, and are intuitive for surgeons and their teams to use.”
November 12th, 2009 at 11:25 pm
What about cranial procedures? DuraSeal has been used for quite some time to seal the dura. Is this a new approval?