Artimplant gets OK to sell rotator cuff patch in U.S.; Biomet to market product under name Sportmesh

By E. Janene Geiss

Philadelphia, Jan. 23 - Artimplant said Monday that it has received approval to market in the United States its rotator cuff reinforcement patch.

Arthrotek Inc., a Biomet company, will market the product under the name of Sportmesh, according to a company news release.

Sportmesh is made of Artimplant's proprietary technology Artelon, a long-term degradable biomaterial that acts as a temporary scaffold to facilitate formation of new host tissue, officials said.

Due to its versatility and unique combination of properties - long-term degradation, mechanical properties similar to human tendons and excellent biocompatibility in hard and soft tissue - Artelon offers new solutions to unmet clinical needs in several therapy areas, officials said.

One of those conditions is a tear of the rotator cuff, a common cause of shoulder pain and disability. Currently more than 300,000 surgeries are performed each year in the United States to fix the condition, the release said.

In addition to using sutures or suture anchors for primary repair of tears, patients with extensive injury or poor tissue quality will benefit from additional support by applying the Artelon rotator cuff reinforcement patch, officials said.

The patch offers additional initial mechanical strength and provides a degradable scaffold that is incorporated into the patients own tissue. The long-term support from the degradable patch should increase long-term strength and minimize the risk of rerupture, officials said.

With the Artelon reinforcement patch, tissue irritation related to animal-derived materials also is eliminated, officials said.

Artimplant is a Stockholm, Sweden, biomaterials company focused on solutions to problems in orthopedic, odontological and reconstructive surgery. The company is engaged in the development, production and marketing of degradable implants designed to restore active lifestyles and improve quality of life.

Based in Warsaw, Ind., Biomet and its subsidiaries design, manufacture and market products used primarily by musculoskeletal medical specialists in both surgical and non-surgical therapy. The company's product portfolio includes orthopedic joint replacement devices, bone cements, dental reconstructive implants, fixation products, including electrical bone growth stimulators, internal and external orthopedic fixation devices, craniomaxillofacial implants and bone substitute materials.

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