dj Orthopedics Launches New, Portable Pain Management System to Control Postoperative Pain

SAN DIEGO -- dj Orthopedics, Inc., a designer, manufacturer and marketer of products and services for the orthopedic sports medicine market, today introduced a new ambulatory pain management system designed to control postoperative pain. The DonJoy Pain Control Device (PCD) is a state-of-the-art, portable, disposable pump that continuously delivers physician prescribed local anesthetic directly into a surgical site over an extended period of time to manage postoperative pain.

Managing postoperative pain at the incision site during the first 72 hours after surgery often reduces the amount of narcotic pain medication required by patients, as well as the subsequent side effects associated with narcotic usage. Reduced pain can also increase patient mobility and contribute to faster recovery and rehabilitation times. dj Orthopedics will market the new device in a convenient sterile kit throughout the United States and Canada where the Company has exclusive distribution rights for all surgical applications.

The DonJoy PCD consists of a new pump manufactured by McKinley Medical, an international supplier of infusion systems and the designer of one of the world's leading pain-management pumps. McKinley's technology incorporates a latex-free disposable system, integrating a proprietary syringe reservoir with a mechanical driver. The DonJoy PCD also features convenient gradient markings on the pump enabling medical personnel and patients to monitor the amount of local anesthetic that has been administered, a feature not found on elastomeric balloon pumps. The DonJoy PCD will be available initially in two reservoir volumes, 100 mL and 275 mL, with multiple flow rates for continuous infusion of up to 5 days. Combined with accessories, including fenestrated, or multi-hole catheters, the new system will provide postoperative pain control for a variety of surgical applications.

"As one of the leading suppliers of ambulatory pain management solutions for the orthopedic sports medicine market, we are pleased to introduce our new and improved system for surgeons and their patients," said Les Cross, president and CEO of dj Orthopedics. "Product innovation whether developed internally or acquired through technology leaders such as McKinley, has been the hallmark of our mission to deliver cost-effective medical solutions that improve patient outcomes. We are also excited about future opportunities to expand pain management sales to broader surgical applications within the hospital market through our extensive relationships with national and regional medical/surgical distributors, as well as through our portfolio of large, long-term national supply contracts and group purchasing organizations such as Broadlane and Premier."

Local anesthetic infiltration is an established technique for the management of postoperative pain. It is common practice in knee and shoulder surgeries to administer a bolus of non-narcotic Bupivacaine (Marcaine) intraoperatively in the joint. However, the duration of relief from this procedure is usually limited to the first few hours after surgery. The DonJoy PCD provides a continuous low dose infusion of local anesthetic directly into the wound site to help manage postoperative pain for periods of 24 to 120 hours. The infusion reduces or eliminates the need for systemic pain medications, such as narcotics and the related side effects, allowing the patient to quickly return to ambulation with improved range of motion, enhancing the recovery and rehabilitation process. Traditional pain management following surgical procedures consists of treatment with intravenous or intramuscular injections of narcotics in the early phase of recovery, followed by administration of oral narcotics. Systemic narcotic usage frequently has side effects such as respiratory depression, excessive sedation, gastro- intestinal upset (nausea and vomiting), addiction and constipation, which may interfere with the patient's rehabilitation and recovery.

Source: dj Orthopedics, Inc.

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