WARSAW, Ind., Sept. 25 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Zimmer Holdings, Inc. , a leader in the orthopaedics industry, announced today that the first Dynesys(R) Dynamic Stabilization System cases using hydroxyapatite (HA)-coated screws have been completed in both the United States and Europe. The Dynesys system is intended to provide stabilization of spinal segments as an adjunct to fusion. The Dynesys system is the first pedicle screw based Dynamic Stabilization system, using polymer based materials, to incorporate an HA-coated screw option.
Zimmer Spine expects to complete a full release of product in the U.S. and Europe by the end of September and plans to highlight the availability of the HA-coated screw option at the upcoming North American Spine Society (NASS) and Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS) meetings in Seattle and Chicago, respectively.
“The Dynesys system has already been a great success for us and provides us with a key component of our growing Spine franchise,” said Ray Elliott, Zimmer Holdings Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer. “We will continue to provide enhancements to our spine products, such as HA and Zimmer- exclusive Trabecular Metal(TM) Technology, to further differentiate ourselves in this important market.”
Dr. Hyun Bae, M.D., orthopaedic spine surgeon at Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA and Dr. Christiane Spreuwers, orthopaedic spine surgeon at A.Z. Jan Portaels, Vilvoorde, Belgium were the first implanting surgeons in the U.S. and Europe, respectively. According to Dr. Bae, “The Dynesys HA-coated screw offers me a new option for my dynamic stabilization patients who would benefit from improved early screw fixation.”
HA is a naturally occurring mineral and a major component of bone and teeth. HA is a well established material and has been widely used in various orthopaedic and spinal applications, including orthopedic bone screws and bone void fillers. Characteristics of HA coating include accelerated bone on- growth during the early postoperative period for an enhanced screw-bone interface.
With the Dynesys system, Zimmer Spine is a global leader in Dynamic Stabilization. Having completed over 25,000 cases globally, including over 4,000 in the U.S., Zimmer Spine is committed to continually innovating and expanding its Dynesys product portfolio.
About the Company
Founded in 1927 and headquartered in Warsaw, Indiana, Zimmer is the worldwide #1 pure-play orthopaedic leader in designing, developing, manufacturing and marketing reconstructive and spinal implants, trauma and related orthopaedic surgical products. Zimmer has operations in more than 24 countries around the world and sells products in more than 100 countries. Zimmer’s 2005 sales were approximately $3.3 billion. The Company is supported by the efforts of more than 6,700 employees worldwide.
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,” “assumes,” “guides,” “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 acquired businesses, the outcome of the Department of Justice investigations announced in March 2005 and June 2006, 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 our periodic reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. We disclaim any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be set forth in our periodic reports. 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: Sean O’Hara, +1-574-371-8032, sean.f.ohara@zimmer.com , or SamLeno, +1-574-372-4790, sam.leno@zimmer.com , all of Zimmer Holdings, Inc.
Web site: http://www.zimmer.com/
