MEDRAD'S MR PRODUCT SALES INCREASE 80% TO OVER $8 MIL. IN FY 1993, HELPING TO PUSH OVERALL SALES AHEAD 17% TO $67.4 MIL.; SYNCOR 3RD Q. SALES UP 15.6%

Medrad's magnetic resonance product sales increased 80% to over $8 mil. for the year ended Jan. 31, helping to boost overall sales 17.2% to $67.4 mil., the company reported March 24. The strong revenue growth contributed to a 53.2% surge in earnings to $5.3 mil. for the year. The MR product line includes two new products, a breast coil developed for General Electric and the MRInnervu disposable prostate probe. An increase in power-injected contrast media usage with computed tomography also "helped fuel strong growth in the sale of injectors," the firm reported. The "increasingly large installed base of injectors is generating ever-rising sales of disposable products." During the year, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based Medrad went public ("The Gray Sheet" July 20, 1992, p. 24) and introduced "enhanced versions" of its power injectors for the European market, "developed a worldwide modification" of the devices to allow for the use of dual syringes, and introduced a syringe "compatible with a competitor's injector." The company also signed agreements with Squibb Diagnostics, a division of Bristol-Myers Squibb, and the Sanofi Winthrop Pharmaceuticals division of Kodak to develop prefilled Medrad syringes using their contrast media. Medrad's international sales for the year were up 28%, comprising 21% of total revenue. For the fourth quarter, income was ahead 23.6% to $2.5 mil. on sales of $21.3 mil., up 10.1% from the comparable quarter last year. Syncor's third quarter (ended Feb. 28) earnings from continuing operations were up 36.1% to $2.2 mil. on sales of $57.6 mil., a 15.6% increase from the same period a year ago. The Chatsworth, California-based diagnostic imaging products and pharmacy services company reports continuing sales growth in the cardiac market "as a result of the sustained high penetration rate of DuPont Merck's Cardiolite and I.V. Persantine." The firm notes that its strategy for future growth "is not dependent upon obtaining price increases for [its] pharmaceuticals" and includes "expanding its nationwide pharmacy network," "increasing penetration of existing new cardiovascular products," "accelerating the market trend of hospitals purchasing radiopharmaceuticals from central radiopharmacies," "and the introduction of new imaging products." The firm also notes that it hopes to complete the divestiture of its home infusion business by May. Biomet reported sales of $84.1 mil. for its third quarter (ended Feb. 28), a 21.4% increase which gave earnings a 21.7% boost to $16 mil. The Warsaw, Indiana-based manufacturer of orthopedic products indicated that the strong results were "attributable to continued market penetration of the company's reconstructive and trauma devices." Orthopedic materials manufacturer Osteotech reported sales for the three months ended Dec. 31 of $3.9 mil., up 42.9% from $2.7 mil. in the same period in 1991. Income was $270,000, up 390.9% from last year. For the year, sales were up 51.3% to $14.7 mil., while earnings slid 34.2% to $399,000. The firm's revenue increases were "primarily attributable to the continued growth in sales of Grafton allogenic bone matrix" and revenues from Netherlands-based HC Implants BV, acquired in the second quarter of 1992 for $2.3 mil. in cash and 195,350 shares of unregistered stock. HC Implants manufactures ceramic coatings for prostheses in the orthopedic and dental implant markets. Earnings were down for the year due to an investment in an expanded direct marketing force and "accelerated investment" in R&D. MedChem's second quarter (ended Feb. 28) sales jumped 55.7% to $8.8 mil. on the strength of its Avitene and Gesco businesses. Income moved ahead 11.9% for the period to $2.3 mil. The firm said in a March 18 release that domestic sales of Avitene, a microfibrillar collagen hemostat, were up 18% to $4.5 mil. for the quarter. Domestic and international sales of Endo- Avitene, an accompanying laparoscopic delivery device, totaled $225,000, and sales of the Hemaflex hemostat reached $104,000, up from $36,000 in the comparable quarter last year. Gesco, acquired by MedChem in August of last year ("The Gray Sheet" Aug. 10, 1992, In Brief), had domestic sales of $2.4 mil. for the three months, up 37%. MedChem's international sales decreased to $1.4 mil. from $1.8 mil. in the comparable period last year due to reduced sales of Avitene to the firm's Japanese distributor Zeria. The reduction was caused by a "short term" oversupply of inventory in Japan, according to the firm. MedChem recently announced plans to spin off its Anika Research subsidiary, which is focusing on hyaluronic acid products, to company shareholders ("The Gray Sheet" March 22, p. 19).