WARSAW, Ind., Dec. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Zimmer Holdings, Inc. announced today that it has entered into an agreement with the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) to establish a Zimmer Institute location at the school to collaborate on advancement of Minimally Invasive Solutions(TM) (MIS(TM)) Procedures and Technologies.
The University of Nebraska location is under the direction of Kevin Garvin, M.D., professor and chair of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Rehabilitation. Under terms of the agreement, Todd Sekundiak, M.D., assistant professor of orthopaedics, will train orthopaedic surgeons to use Zimmer's minimally invasive technologies and participate in MIS product refinement. The university will function as a Zimmer Institute teaching facility and will become a Center of Excellence for MIS patient care.
"We are pleased to be partnering with an outstanding group of orthopaedic surgeons and the University of Nebraska Medical Center, and look forward to working with them to make the patient benefits of MIS procedures more widely available," said Zimmer Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Ray Elliott. "Minimally invasive joint replacement is getting people back to work or to their hobbies more quickly, but the patient benefits and the expected savings to the overall health care system will only be realized when the procedures are widely available. As a respected training institution, the UNMC will play a key role in realizing the promise of MIS procedures."
"We are excited about the prospect of combining what we have learned about minimally invasive orthopaedics with the experience of Zimmer and the other members of the Zimmer Institute network," said Dr. Garvin. "As an internationally known teaching institution, we believe this opportunity to expand surgeon education is very consistent with our mission and our expertise."
One focus of activity at the UNMC location will be development of Computer-Assisted Solutions(TM) (CAS(TM)) technologies for surgical navigation in MIS procedures. Zimmer has worked closely with Dr. Sekundiak on development of next-generation CAS systems that would employ electromagnetics in MIS Quad-Sparing(TM) Total Knee Arthroplasty. In addition to his involvement in MIS programs, Dr. Sekundiak and Dr. Garvin will be working with Zimmer to develop training courses related to revision joint replacement. "The number of revision procedures, as a percentage of all joint replacements, is growing as people live longer and expect to maintain an active lifestyle later in life," said Dr. Sekundiak. "I look forward to working with Zimmer to help a greater number of orthopaedic surgeons become more comfortable with these complex revision procedures." Another UNMC faculty member, Matthew Mormino, M.D., will conduct training courses related to orthopaedic trauma.
Zimmer opened the first location of the Zimmer Institute at the company's headquarters in Warsaw, Indiana, in 2003. Since then, it has established partnerships with Johns Hopkins University and the Tucson Orthopaedic Institute in the United States, and with several international partners. The company says this network of Zimmer Institute locations will contribute to a common pool of data and best practices, enabling each partner to benefit from the experience and developments of the others. The company expects to provide training for more than 1,400 surgeons during 2004 at all Institute locations.
About the University of Nebraska Medical Center
The University of Nebraska Medical Center, located in Omaha, Nebraska, is a nationally respected institution with a staff of more than 1,000 faculty physicians and scientists, 1,550 nurses, and more than 3,000 therapists, technicians, and other highly trained professionals delivering comprehensive and innovative medical treatment. The University's orthopaedic surgery department is well known for the quality of its faculty and alumni and the innovative research it conducts.
About Zimmer
Founded in 1927 and headquartered in Warsaw, Indiana, Zimmer is the worldwide #1 pure-play orthopaedic leader in the design, development, manufacture and marketing of reconstructive and spinal implants, trauma and related orthopaedic surgical products. In October 2003, the Company finalized its acquisition of Centerpulse AG, a Switzerland-based orthopaedics company and the leader in the European reconstructive market. The new Zimmer has operations in more than 24 countries around the world and sells products in more than 80 countries. As a result of the acquisition of Centerpulse, reported 2003 sales were $1.9 billion. Full-year 2003 pro forma worldwide sales of Zimmer and Centerpulse were approximately $2.6 billion. The new Zimmer is supported by the efforts of more than 6,500 employees.
Visit Zimmer on the worldwide web at http://www.zimmer.com/ Zimmer Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about the orthopaedics industry, management's beliefs and assumptions made by management. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of forward-looking terms such as "may," "will," "expects," "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "estimates," "projects," "targets," "forecasts," and "seeks" or the negative of such terms or other variations on such terms or comparable terminology. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, our ability to successfully integrate Centerpulse AG and Implex Corp., the outcome of the pending informal SEC investigation of Centerpulse accounting, price and product competition, rapid technological development, demographic changes, dependence on new product development, the mix of our products and services, supply and prices of raw materials and products, customer demand for our products and services, control of costs and expenses, our ability to form and implement alliances, international growth, governmental laws and regulations affecting our U.S. and international businesses, including tax obligations and risks, product liability and intellectual property litigation losses, reimbursement levels from third-party payors, general industry and market conditions and growth rates and general domestic and international economic conditions including interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations. For a further list and description of such risks and uncertainties, see the disclosure materials filed by Zimmer with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Zimmer disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Readers of this document are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, since, while we believe the assumptions on which the forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, there can be no assurance that these forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate. This cautionary statement is applicable to all forward-looking statements contained in this document.
Zimmer Holdings, Inc.CONTACT: Media: Brad Bishop, +1-574-372-4291,bradley.bishop@zimmer.com , Investors: Marc Ostermann, +1-574-371-8515,marc.ostermann@zimmer.com , or Sam Leno, +1-574-372-4790,sam.leno@zimmer.com , all of Zimmer Holdings, Inc.
Web site: http://www.zimmer.com/