Extremity Medical on April 28 filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona against Fusion Orthopedics concerning patent infringement of an intraosseous fixation platform.
Extremity Medical alleges that Fusion Orthopedics released a product similar to its IOFiX platform, according to an April 28 news release. It names Nathan Peterson, a former sales representative at Extremity Medical who went on to create Fusion Orthopedics in 2014.
"It is undisputable that Mr. Peterson had intimate knowledge of Extremity Medical’s products, which he gained while representing Extremity Medical, and that he also had physical access to the Extremity Medical’s unique and patented devices, before starting Fusion Orthopedics."
Fusion Orthopedics in an April 28 news release described the allegations as "baseless."
"Fusion’s position is that [Extremity Medical] is inequitably attempting to weaponize their patents against companies to gain a market advantage beyond their legal right," the release said. "This litigation tactic employed by EM is bad for healthcare because it attempts to strangle medical device innovation that may improve patient surgical outcomes and reduce the cost of care."