Metrowest Medical Centers Successfully Avoid Invasive-Catheter Use

DANVERS, Mass. -- Medwave, Inc. announced today that it has been informed by representatives of Metrowest Medical Centers located in Framingham and Natick,

Mass. that the medical centers have been able to almost completely eliminate invasive arterial catheters in many of their surgical patients undergoing vascular procedures.

Metrowest purchased Medwave's Vasotrac monitors for their operating rooms approximately nine months ago. At the time of the purchase, it was estimated that approximately 24 invasive arterial catheters could be eliminated for each Vasotrac used, with projected cost savings to the hospital during a 12-month timeframe of $10,914 per operating room that used a Vasotrac. The actual cost savings are not available yet; however, it is estimated that the number of arterial catheters that have been avoided is in the range of 33 catheters per Vasotrac used, 28 percent more effective than the initial estimates.

Dottie Campbell, a certified nurse anesthetist, has been using the Vasotrac monitor specifically on vascular patients, and has the following observations: "We have been able to use the Vasotrac technology on patients undergoing vascular surgeries, where previously, we would have had to place an invasive catheter in the patient's artery. This patient population would have likely had a catheter placed in an effort to accurately and frequently monitor the patients' blood pressures. However, with the Vasotrac, we have almost eliminated the use of invasive catheters in these patients. We are beginning

to use the Vasotrac in many other areas as well, such as high-risk pregnancies, and these patients find the Vasotrac much more comfortable than a conventional blood pressure cuff."

Tim O'Malley, president and CEO of Medwave, Inc., states, "In many situations, we are presenting a cost savings analysis to customers during their initial evaluation period. The analysis is customized according to the number of surgical procedures performed, the number of operating rooms the customer has, and an estimation of the number of invasive catheters used. We then develop an estimate of how much money the customer will save through invasive catheter reductions. It is very encouraging to see that the results vs. the initial estimates are in line with each other. Based on the initial results at Metrowest, it seems promising that a hospital could expect to save enough money in the first 6 months of ownership that from that point forward, it may experience positive cash flows due to cost savings realized through use of Medwave's technology. In addition, the fact that a hospital can avoid numerous invasive procedures offers tremendous gains in patient care. We have sold hundreds of Vasotrac monitors with similar projected savings to other healthcare centers and are confident that those facilities are experiencing results similar to those experienced by the clinical staff at the Metrowest Medical Centers."

There have been several studies completed that have compared the accuracy and comfort levels of the Vasotrac to other blood pressure monitoring methods. In most situations, the Vasotrac has been found to be substantially more comfortable than a blood pressure cuff, while offering comparable accuracy to an invasive arterial catheter. Medwave technology is already installed in more than 500 hospitals and clinics worldwide.

Medwave, Inc. develops, manufactures, and distributes non-invasive blood pressure products. Its Vasotrax Hand Held Monitor, MJ23 OEM Module, and the Vasotrac APM205A NIBP Monitor are new approaches to non-invasive blood pressure monitoring. Over the past few years, Medwave has received the necessary regulatory clearances to market its technology in Europe, Asia, and North America. Medwave is ISO9001/EN46001/MDD93/42/EEC certified and all of its products are CE marked. The company has entered into distribution agreements throughout various parts of the world.

Source: Medwave, Inc.