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The strategic intent of Smith & Nephew Endoscopy’s Global Business Unit is to expand its leadership in the arthroscopy marketplace by executing on focused growth initiatives, operational excellence, strategic acquisitions, and organizational excellence.

Product innovation is critical to our achieving our profit and revenue targets, and distancing ourselves from the competition. What follows is a sampling of the innovation from Smith & Nephew Endoscopy in 2006. 

With the 2006 acquisition of OsteoBiologics Inc., Smith & Nephew expanded its line of resorbable repair products, including the TRUREPAIR^◊ Product line.

TRUFIT^◊ CB, Smith & Nephew’s primary TRUREPAIR^◊ product marketed in Europe, is used in a one-step arthroscopic procedure for repairing bone and articular cartilage defects.

The TRUFIT^◊ implants are manufactured with poly (D,L-lactide-co-glycolide) polymer, formed into a bi-layered cylindrical scaffold that is absorbed by the body within six to nine months

Smith & Nephew Endoscopy is the leader in the emerging hip arthroscopy marketplace.

The hip, the largest joint in the human body, is difficult to access during arthroscopic procedures, and so specialized instruments are required.

Smith & Nephew Endoscopy's hip repair line is making it possible for surgeons to deliver treatment on an outpatient basis. Most hip arthroscopy is performed at ambulatory surgery centers, with full recovery expected within 10 to 12 weeks.

Smith & Nephew’s Hip Positioning System, which attaches to most standard operating room tables, is designed to slightly separate the joint, creating space for the surgeon to work. 

The Hip Positioning System is designed with a unique ball joint that enables surgeons to move the joint as needed during procedures. The Hip Positioning System’s flexibility and cost make it a simple and convenient option for outpatient surgery centers looking to grow their hip arthroscopy practices.

Endoscopy was the first to market with a device to repair one of the most common sources of hip pain – tears in the labrum.

The labrum is the fibrous ring of cartilage attached to the rim of the hip socket. This cartilage helps stabilize the hip joint. According to one recent study, labral tears are present in 90 percent of hip arthroscopy cases. They can result in hip pain, diminished athletic performance and limitations on the activities of daily living.

The BIORAPTOR^◊ Suture Anchor was originally introduced in Smith & Nephew Endoscopy's shoulder line. The tiny anchor, threaded with ULTRABRAID^◊ Suture, is implanted into the bone of the cup of the hip joint. This enables the surgeon to close the tear or tighten the labral tissue as required.

Medical facilities collect a great deal of patient information in a variety of images - still photos and digital video of diagnostic procedures or surgeries. Many medical centers lack an efficient means of managing this information.

The 660HD Image Management System can digitally capture, edit, export and print endoscopic surgical images and patient information, enabling the medical practitioner to select the most significant and useful images captured during any type of surgical procedure. The OR staff can export the images to DVD, CD or USB, and integrate them into the hospital's information technology architecture, where they can be stored with the patients' electronic medical record.

The 660 HD Image Management System can interface with any hospital information system, but is designed as a key component of Smith & Nephew's Digital Operating Room, which incorporates Internet, digital and A/V technology, and can be customized for specialty surgeries, such as cardiac, arthroscopic or general surgery procedures.

Surgical images that have been recorded using "true High Definition" technology can be stored with the same top quality image resolution that is the standard in the film and television industries.

The KINSA^◊ Suture Anchor provides a fast, secure and consistent method of repairing instability of the shoulder.

Shoulder instability results when the ligaments of the shoulder become stretched or, after injury, become pulled away from the bone. As a result, the shoulder can easily slip out of joint. Traditionally, surgeons tighten the ligament using suture that has been anchored to bone in the shoulder capsule.

Smith & Nephew Endoscopy's KINSA^◊ Suture Anchor is designed with a self-locking, sliding knot encased inside the anchor. This enables the surgeon to position the anchor in the best possible part of the joint without having to worry about complications resulting from the location of surgical knots. At times, stacks of knots that secure a repair can create irritation within the joint after surgery, or can loosen, resulting in a release of the tension required for the best possible repair.

The KINSA^◊ Suture Anchor allows the surgeon to create a more consistent tissue attachment. The fixation can be adjusted simply by pulling the suture, not by sinking the anchor deeper into the bone, as required with competing devices for treating instability.

The CONDOR^◊ Control System for operating rooms is designed as the nucleus of Smith & Nephew's Digital Operating Rooms (Digital ORs), customized surgical solutions designed to improve patient care and operating room efficiency.

The system serves as a surgical command center that puts medical staff in control of the devices, patient information and even the lighting and temperature of the operating room.

CONDOR^◊ technology makes it possible for a medical team to send commands to medical devices, digital cameras, image management systems and other components using voice commands and a wireless touch panel. It also enables real-time streaming audio and video of the procedure over the Internet to classrooms, offices and consulting surgeons in other locations, around the world.

The system is modular. It can be configured to work with a hospital's existing information systems, and it can be upgraded as new features and new technologies are released.