In Brief: Circon VaporTrode II
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
Circon VaporTrode II: Vaporizing electrode will be introduced "this month," Circon President and CEO Richard Auhll said Feb. 7 at the Piper Jaffray Medical Device Conference in New York City. The VaporTrode II, which will sell for $135, incorporates a new "scalloped" design "with longitudinal peaks," compared to the original VaporTrode's "barrel" design "with circumferential grooves," Auhll explained. Designed for use with Circon's Rotating Continuous Flow Resectoscope, the VaporTrode technology has been billed as a less costly treatment for benign prostatic hyperplasia than both transurethral resection of the prostate and laser vaporization. Auhll said that clinical reports indicate that VaporTrode II is "35-40% more effective" than the original device. The exec noted that Circon is expecting competition for the VaporTrode II, but added that the product has a "nice patent position" that the company will "defend...vigorously"...