Technology Review (November-December 1998) has an informative article "Welding Wounds" that includes product and "solder" progress, and mentions 4 companies: Abiomed, Premier Laser Systems, and Vitex (all 3 public, according to the table on page 74) and Conversion Energy Enterprises (private). It is mostly about Abiomed, but fairly balanced.
techreview.com
Excerpt:
A handful of biomedical startups and established laser manufacturers are working feverishly on it, and larger surgical companies are keeping a close watch on the progress. The work is driven by the potential advantages of laser welding: faster surgeries, fewer complications, quicker healing. The hard commercial reality, however, is that, for most common procedures, suturing and stapling are cheap and deeply entrenched. But recent advances in surgery, especially ones in the fast-growing field of minimally invasive procedures, are creating opportunities that could make laser welding a clinical reality.
Premier is mentioned in the sidebar "Mending a broken heart" and in the print version in a table "Companies looking for a cut" that lists the 4 companies, their location, and strategy. |
