By: Deborah Johnson Wood
Avalon Laboratories LLC has received a U.S. patent on a new medical device and approval to distribute that device and two others to the United States and European medical markets.
The company developed the devices at its laboratory in Grand Valley State University’s Cook-DeVos Center for Health Sciences.
The newly-patented device, the Avalon Elite Bi-Caval Dual Lumen Catheter, helps balance blood gas exchange levels related to lung function. The DLC drains blood from the internal jugular vein and simultaneously re-infuses it directly into the heart.
“Surgeons are primarily using this for lung support for patients whose lungs might be damaged [if they use] a ventilator,” says Rio Foster, Avalon spokesperson. “The patient’s blood goes through an external circuit. If an oxygenator is attached, the blood returns to the body already oxygenated, giving the lungs a chance to rest and heal. There’s nothing like it on the market.”
According to Foster, lung failure is the fourth leading cause of death in the United States.
The company collaborated with two University of Kentucky faculty members to develop the DLC. Later this month, the university will be the first medical center to offer the device to patients.
The second product, the Avalon Elite Multi-Port Venous Femoral Catheter, enables doctors to drain blood from a patient’s femoral vein during procedures that require this as a life support measure.
The third product, the Avalon Elite Vascular Access Kit, helps health care professionals insert and position catheters and cannulae correctly.
Source: Rio Foster, Avalon Laboratories LLC; Rebecca Howe, Lambert, Edwards & Associates
Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].
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