A Medical Device Daily

Applied Medical Resources (Rancho Santa Margarita, California) reported that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled in Applied Medical's favor and vacated the district court's ruling for Tyco International / US Surgical (USSC; Pembroke, Bermuda) in the third patent infringement case brought by Applied Medical against USSC. All three cases have involved infringement of the same U.S. Patent No. 5,385,553 titled “Trocar with Floating Septum Seal.” The USSC trocar line at issue is the Versaport Plus trocars.

This is the fourth time the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in Applied's favor in this series of patent infringement cases against USSC. Notably, in 1998, the court affirmed $20.5 million and willfulness judgments against USSC. In 2003, the court affirmed a permanent injunction concerning USSC's second infringement. Earlier this year, the court denied the appeal by USSC to set aside $64.5 million and willfulness judgments in the second infringement case.

In other legalities: Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox reported that Metron Integrated Health Systems , with locations in West Michigan, has agreed to enter into a Corporate Integrity Agreement (CIA) designed to improve the clinical performance of the Metron facilities.

“Ensuring the proper care and safety of the residents of Metron facilities was and is priority number one,” said Cox. “The agreement will ensure just that. Metron's nine facilities will be closely monitored to make certain that no patient suffers the way Sarah Comer did.”

The Attorney General filed a civil complaint against Metron on March 8, 2006 (Cox v. Miko Enterprises Inc., d/b/a Metron Integrated Health Systems, et al, Ingham County Circuit Court Case No. 06-314-CZ [Judge Paula Manderfield]), alleging that since 2003, Metron's Allegan, Big Rapids, and Kalamazoo facilities provided inadequate care to their residents and failed to comply with applicable state and federal law or the policies, procedures, rules, and regulations of the Medicaid Program. The civil action followed criminal charges the Attorney General brought against eight employees of the Metron of Big Rapids nursing home stemming from the death of oxygen-dependant resident Sarah Comer in January 2005.

The CIA will be the basis for settling the civil action.

Atherotech CMO now certified lipidologist

Atherotech (Birmingham, Alabama), which focuses on cardiodiagnostic technology, reported that Paul Ziajka, MD, PhD, the company's chief medical officer, now is one of only 180 physicians in the U.S. to become a board-certified lipidologist.

The certification was granted by the American Board of Clinical Lipidology (ABCL; Jacksonville, Florida), a non-profit organization dedicated to reducing morbidity and mortality from dyslipidemia and related diseases by assessing qualifications and certifying knowledge in clinical lipidology. The organization certifies only those physicians who have distinguished themselves among their colleagues and have satisfied the ABCL's rigorous credentialing and testing requirements. The ABCL began certifying physicians in 2005.

Healthcare professionals in the area of lipid management specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of cholesterol disorders, which can lead to atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease.