Basic life support personnel may able to use two new automated external defibrillators (AED): the AED 10 and AED 20. According to the company, the defibrillators provide clear audible instructions and visual prompts on a large, high-resolution display, making the units easy to use for even minimally trained staff. Text messages, voice prompts and instructional illustrations guide the user through a 1-2-3 process. First, turn the unit on. Second, the unit determines if a shock is needed. Third, you administer the shock. List price for the AED 10 is $2,110, and list price for the basic AED 20 is $3,460.

Welch Allyn
800.535.6663
www.welchallyn.com

All-in-one cleaning kit The Instrument Workstation includes a series of products designed to make instrument cleaning easier and more efficient. The Instrument Workstation comes with the following products: Spectra-Lube, a spray-on lubricant; Spectra-Scrub, a surgical instrument stain remover; two rolls of scissor test material for testing sharpness of all sizes of surgical scissors; and an assortment of tip protectors. The Instrument Workstation is also equipped with a stringer stand, which makes instrument stringing faster and easier. The Instrument Workstation costs $153.47.

Spectrum Surgical
800.444.5644
www.spectrumsurgical.com

Suction system said to offer more power ReliaFlex surgical suction liner system provides 28 percent more suction power than other liners, says DeRoyal, its maker. According to the company, the ReliaFlex's vacuum ports and hoses have diameters that are 20 percent larger than competitive products, and the filter/valve combination has over 1,000 percent more surface area for air to pass through. The product comes in three large canister sizes (1300 cc, 1800 cc or 3200 cc), reducing the need for multiple liners for one procedure. DeRoyal ReliaFlex comes in a variety of standard kits, which include elbows, tubing (either funnel or connector styles) and solidifier. The company declined to give prices.

DeRoyal
800.DeRoyal
www.deroyal.com

A tool for tough cataract cases Your eye surgeons may be able to perform successful posterior chamber IOL implantation even when the integrity of the capsular bag is compromised with StabilEyes capsular tension ring. The capsular tension ring is an open, circular-shaped filament made of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA). According to American Medical Optics, it stabilizes capsular bags damaged by trauma or during surgery before implantation of an intraocular lens. The company declined to give prices.

Advanced Medical Optics, Inc.
714.247.8200
www.amo-inc.com

Instrument tracking device You may be able to more conveniently track valuable information about your surgical instruments, such as purchase date, cost, scheduled preventative maintenance, repair history, number of sterilization cycles, instrument utilization by case and employee, with the InfoDot from Key Surgical. Each InfoDot contains a unique number that is laser-engraved into a two-dimensional DataMatrix bar code and can be scanned using a CCD reader. The 3/16-inch, 1/4-inch, and 3/8-inch diameter labels are applied directly to the instruments. The device links the instrument to a computer file that contains a history of the instrument. Every time the instrument is scanned, a "date/time stamp" tracks the instrument at each step in its life cycle. A sheet of 100 dots costs less than $100.

Key Surgical
800.541.7995
www.keysurgical.com

Reusable pain pump may save money AmbIT infusion pumps are reusable and so may be more cost-effective than competing disposable pumps, says the maker, Sorenson Medical. The company says its ambIT PCA (patient controlled analgesia) and its ambIT LPM (local pain management) are comparably priced to many disposable local pain management pumps. The company says the battery-operated pumps are easy to use and offer multiple flow rates, infusion durations and other customized features. The pumps can be used for all types of post-operative local pain management, including orthopedic, general, obstetric/gynecological, plastic and podiatric surgery. The company declined to provide pricing.

Sorenson Medical
877.352.1888
www.sorensonmedical.com

A safer way to do lithotripsy? The FREDDY (FREquency Doubled Dual-pulse, Nd:YAG) laser may provide faster, safer lithotripsy treatments. The intracorporeal shock wave laser neither perforates nor coagulates tissue, says the company. A thin optical fiber inserted in the working channel of an endoscope transfers short laser pulses to the kidney or bile duct stone. Unlike holmium laser treatments, the treatment generates virtually no thermal stress to tissue, says the company. Once the shock waves fragment the stone, the surgeon removes the fragments, or they can be flushed from the body naturally. The company claims that even if non-targeted tissue is inadvertently exposed to the laser pulses, the tissue is not harmed, resulting in less trauma and faster procedures. The laser costs around $60,000.

World of Medicine
888.469.4378
www.world-of-medicine.com

Organize the sterile field You may be able to keep instruments and surgical supplies from falling off the sterile field with the Sandel Medical Industries' Keep It Up System. The system contains a combination of eight products, including tube, cord and instrument holders, saddle bags, instrument drapes, trays, plastic clamps and an instrument catcher. You can use individual products or choose any combination of them to customize a kit to meet your institution's needs. The products range from $1.12 for tube holders to $67.79 for the instrument catcher.

Sandel Medical
866.SMIDEAS
www.sandelmedical.com