Belgian start-up TiGenix NV's cartilage repair treatment ChondroCelect may overcome a key hurdle faced by most existing therapies, by selecting in advance of implantation only those cartilage cells least likely to mineralize.

AM-Pharma BV, a Dutch start up firm, is trying to harness the body's innate ability to fight infection. The company has three programs based on its antimicrobial peptide technology platform and has recently merged with compatriot PharmAAware Sepsis BV to pursue the use of alkaline phosphatase as a treatment for sepsis and other infection-inspired inflammatory disorders.

Beset by cost and consolidation pressures, many orthopedic companies are re-thinking traditional industry success strategies. Not Biomet. The Warsaw-based company is quietly thriving by focusing on core industry values such as the importance of independent distributors, the ability of companies to differentiate their technology, and the fundamentally local nature of the industry.