Here are the top 15 orthopedic and spine device company news stories of 2013 from Becker's Spine Review.
Minimally invasive spine market on the rise. The U.S. minimally invasive spine device market is expected to reach $3 billion by 2019.
Medtronic Spine reduces workforce. Medtronic Spine announced plans to restructure its workforce with layoffs and cost-cutting measures to reduce overall costs by 5 percent.
Dr. Andrew Cappuccino sues NuVasive. Andrew Cappuccino, MD, filed a lawsuit against NuVasive for $660,000 he claimed the company failed to pay him after the approval of a medical device developed by Cervitech.
Spine surgeons call for implant price transparency. Researchers collected information from 45 academic medical centers and found if spine surgeons were more aware of implant costs then they may work with hospitals to negotiate lower implant prices.
Spine device start-up challenges. Increasing regulations and cost-cutting measures have some in the industry wondering what it will take for spine device start-ups to survive and thrive.
OIG issues POD findings. The Office of the Inspector General released a report on physician-owned distributorships related to spine devices.
Stryker buys MAKO Surgical. Stryker acquired MAKO Surgical, developer of the RIO Robotic Arm orthopedic system of MAKOplasty Partial Knee Resurfacing procedure, for $1.65 billion.
Orthopedic device market on the rise. The orthopedic devices market is expected to reach $19.2 billion by 2016 at a compound annual growth rate of 5.8 percent.
Surgeons begin to use Mobi-C. Richard Wohns, MD, JD, MBA, performed the first two-level cervical artificial disc replacement surgery in the Northwest and one of the first in the nation, using Mobi-C Cervical Disc Prosthesis from LDR.
FDA warns NuVasive about marketing. The FDA issued a warning letter to NuVasive for selling Affix Spinous Process Plate systems for uses not approved by the device's 510(k) clearance.
Medicare covers coflex spine device in three states. Medicare decided to cover Paradigm Spine's coflex interlaminar stabilization device in Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee.
Zimmer must pay Stryker $70M. Zimmer Holdings was told to pay $70 million to Stryker for patent infringements for devices that use pulsing liquid to clean bones during joint replacement surgery.
Synthes accuses former employee of contract violation. Synthes USA filed a civil action claim against a former employee Bryan Bair, saying the man violated his non-compete clause by taking a similar position for competitor Versa Med.
Globus Medical sues Johnson & Johnson for patent infringement. Globus Medical filed suit against Johnson & Johnson, alleging the DePuy Synthes Zero-P VA spinal implant infringes on its patent for an intervertebral fusion implant.
Orthofix splits spine in two. Orthofix realigned its business to now include BioStim, spine fixation, biologics, international extremity fixation and extremity fixation in the United States; the spine business was separated into BioStim and Spinal Fixation.
More Articles on Devices:
First Navio Unicondylar Knee Replacement Performed in France
NuVasive Appoints Three Directors for European Device Market Leadership
Stryker Reaches Settlements in First Four Hip Lawsuits Filed in New Jersey