23 September 2005 10:01 PM Zeitzone Berlin
Biophan Files Twelve New Patents in MRI Safety Expanding Intellectual Property Portfolio to More Than 200 Including International Filings
BIOWIRE2K
ROCHESTER, N.Y--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 23, 2005-- Innovations Enable Manufacturers of Pacemakers, Neurostimulators, and Other Medical Devices to Make Products MRI Safe
Biophan Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB: BIPH)(Frankfurt/FSE: BTN) a developer of next-generation biomedical technology, has announced the filing of twelve new patents, expanding the Company's extensive intellectual property portfolio to more than 200 patents, applications, or licenses. That total includes 156 pending and issued U.S. patents and another 46 international applications.
The twelve new patents teach how a tiny circuit can be added to minimize dangerous heating which can occur when devices such as pacemaker and neurostimulators leads are exposed to MRI signals. The circuits are powered by the energy in the MRI field and dissipate the energy so that heating does not occur. The circuits can be tuned to specific frequencies, such as the frequencies associated with 1.5 and 3.0 Tesla MRI machines. These circuits have been tested under worst-case conditions on representative devices, and can reduce heating to acceptable levels.
The twelve patents teach a variety of ways that these circuits can reduce heating on many types of medical devices that suffer from MRI safety limitations. These include many implantable devices, such as pacemakers, defibrillators, and neurostimulators, devices used for Parkinson's, epilepsy and pain control, as well as stimulation devices for obesity control, gastrointestinal and bladder control. In addition to implantable devices, this technology applies to devices used in interventional medicine, including catheters, guidewires, and other surgical tools.
"We anticipate a shift over the next several years, where virtually all biomedical devices currently contraindicated for MRI or experiencing imaging limitations, will be made both safe and compatible for use with MRI. Over $12 billion worth of devices are sold every year with these shortcomings," stated Michael Weiner, Biophan CEO. "It is unfortunate when a patient who needs to be staged for a cancer operation is denied access to an MRI machine because they have a pacemaker or other contraindicated implant. An even more tragic situation occurs when a patient is placed in an MRI machine in spite of the contraindication by a physician who is not aware of the implant, or who does not realize that MRI is dangerous when used with these devices. The FDA issued a new warning recently advising radiologists not to place patients with neurostimulators in MRI machines, as one patient went into a coma after the contraindication was not heeded.
"The optimal solution is for manufacturers to make their devices safe for use with MRI. Biophan has the technology to enable this, and there is now significant activity underway to help make future neurostimulators safe for use with MRI, and some increased activity on the part of pacemaker manufacturers," Mr. Weiner said. "There is no ethical justification to continue to ship medical devices that are not safe for use with MRI, and we are pleased to note the increasing activity on the part of many of the major manufacturers to move in this direction."
As previously announced, Biophan has provided a license for MRI safety and image compatibility, covering multiple products to leading medical device manufacturer Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX). Discussions are underway with many other medical device manufacturers in these areas as well.
To learn more about MRI safety and medical devices, visit Biophan's web site at http://www.biophan.com/mrisafety.php or www.biophan.com.
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