Say hello to MassDevice +3, a bite-sized view of the top three medtech stories of the day. This feature of MassDevice.com’s coverage highlights our 3 biggest and most influential stories from the day’s news to make sure you’re up to date on the headlines that continue to shape the medical device industry.
3. Judge vacates $5M arbitration award in ex-reps’ suit against Masimo
Masimo is off the hook for a $5 million arbitration award after a federal judge yesterday found the arbitrator was biased against the medical device company because of his brother’s work as a lawyer for patient monitoring rival Covidien.
The ex-reps, Michael Ruhe and Vicente Catala, accused Masimo of promoting off-label uses for its Pronto and Pronto-7 patient monitoring devices, improperly billing government insurance programs, withholding sales records and interfering with subpoenas. Read more
2. NuVasive loses 2nd, $30M trademark trial against NeuroVision
NuVasive Inc. (NSDQ:NUVA) vowed to appeal its 2nd loss to NeuroVision Medical Products in a trademark infringement lawsuit, after a California jury yesterday awarded $30 million in damages to NeuroVision.
NeuroVision 1st sued NuVasive in 2009, alleging infringement of its namesake trademark. Read more
1. FDA approves St. Jude Medical’s Protégé spinal cord stimulator
St. Jude Medical said it won pre-market approval from the FDA for its Protégé spinal cord stimulator for treating chronic pain, calling it the 1st neurostimulation system equipped for upgrades without surgery.
The Protégé device is designed to alleviate chronic pain after traditional treatments have failed, by interfering with the transmission of pain signals using electrical pulses, according to a press release. The upgrade feature gives patients implanted with the Protégé access to “therapies, stimulation modes, diagnostics or other features once approved through future software upgrades,” according to the release, without the need to surgically replace the device. Read more
