September 2, 2008 - Terumo Cardiovascular Systems said today it filed a patent infringement complaint Aug. 21 in the Northern District of California against Maquet Cardiovascular LLC, alleging Maquet’s Vasoview Endoscopic Vessel Harvesting System infringes a Terumo patent.
Terumo said the complaint requests an injunction against further sales of the Maquet product in the U.S.
Terumo sells the VirtuoSaph Endoscopic Vessel Harvesting System in the U.S., Japan, Asia and Europe.
“Terumo respects the valid intellectual property of others and expects that its competitors will do the same,” said Mark Sutter, president and CEO, Terumo Cardiovascular Systems.
The VirtuoSaph system is used during coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), the most common cardiac surgery procedure. During the procedure, the surgeon removes a healthy artery or vein from elsewhere in the body, most often the saphenous vein in the leg, and uses it to route blood around a blockage in a coronary artery. The VirtuoSaph system allows the surgical team to remove the saphenous vein using very small incisions. Endoscopic procedures have been shown to minimize scarring, morbidity and infection associated with traditional longitudinal incisions.
For more information: www.terumo-cvs.com