FOX Translator

Detach

No data currently available.

No data currently available.

Commodity

Even if you don't think you do, you already know plenty about commodities. Want us to prove it? No problem.

What makes oil produced in Saudi Arabia different from oil exported from Nigeria? It's the same thing that makes the corn you ate at last summer¿s barbecue different from the corn used to produce ethanol. Stumped? Well, don't feel bad, it's a trick question. The answer? Absolutely nothing. Corn is corn no matter where it comes from -- just as wheat is wheat and natural gas is -- right! -- natural gas. (Though the quality may differ, the make-up is uniform.)

So, in less elaborate terms, corn and oil (and all other commodities) are homogenous goods that can be processed, resold and more often than not, used as an input to the production of other goods or services. These goods are traded on a commodity exchange, thus setting the price-per-barrel (or other metric unit) used to value them.

Now pay attention, here's a question that indeed does have an answer: What is the difference between a commodity and a stock? While a stock can tank and become worthless, a commodity cannot have its value be wiped to zero. One other difference: Most commodities are traded in futures, meaning traders buy and sell where they think the price of a product will be at a certain point in the future. Stocks trade based on the value of the underlying company at that point in time.

Home / Markets / Industries / Health Care

Concentric Medical Launches Next Generation Family of Neurovascular Retrievers

 
Comtex
 

MOUNTAIN VIEW, California, Jul 28, 2008 (PR Newswire Europe via COMTEX) ----Concentric Medical, Inc., the global leader in devices for clot removal in ischemic stroke patients, today announced the U.S. launch of its "V" series of Merci Retrievers. These new Retrievers, available in multiple configurations and sizes to match patient anatomy, join Concentric Medical's existing Merci Retrievers already on the market, and provide physicians with additional options for restoring blood flow in patients who have suffered ischemic strokes.

The V series Retrievers have been designed to be the most efficient Merci Retrievers yet and are the culmination of Concentric Medical's many years of experience providing neurovascular retrievers for ischemic stroke patients. The distal end of the latest Retriever is tightly coiled, which resists stretching and assists in dislodging clots. The proximal end of the V series Retrievers is more loosely coiled, which facilitates wrapping and holding a dislodged clot. Similar to Concentric Medical's L family of Retrievers, the V series of Merci Retrievers incorporate filaments that provide an additional mechanism for securing blood clots during retrieval from the brain. The V series of Merci Retrievers will be available in diameters of 2.0, 2.5 and 3.0 millimeters.

"The Merci Retrieval System(TM) is the most widely used clot retrieval system for ischemic stroke, and we continue to incorporate the knowledge gained from our experience, as well as input from many clinicians, into improved devices," said Maria Sainz, President and CEO of Concentric Medical. "These next generation Retrievers are further evidence of our leadership in bringing exciting and new life-saving options to stroke patients."

The Merci Retriever(R) is made with a flexible, shaped Nitinol wire that allows delivery of the Retriever in linear form using standard catheterization techniques. A neurointerventionalist makes a small puncture in the groin to introduce the Merci Retriever into an artery leading to the brain. The Merci Retriever returns to its original shape when deployed in and around the blood clot in the brain.

About Concentric Medical

Concentric Medical is located in Mountain View, California, and was founded in August 1999. The company manufactures and markets the Merci Retrieval System, which is a minimally invasive device that is delivered by a neurointerventionalist into the brain to restore blood flow by engaging, capturing and removing blood clots that cause ischemic stroke. The Merci Retrieval System is available in over 250 leading stroke centers around the world, and has been the subject of two successful clinical trials, MERCI and Multi MERCI. Concentric Medical estimates that over 8,000 patients have been treated with its devices. For more information about Concentric Medical, please visit http://www.concentric-medical.com.

Media Contact: Andrew Gordon
   +1-650-810-1701 agordon@concentric-medical.com 

Web site: http://www.concentric-medical.com

Andrew Gordon
   of Concentric Medical, Inc., +1-650-810-1701, agordon@concentric-medical.com 
Copyright (C) 2008 PR Newswire Europe
 

Market Snapshot

Symbol Last Price Netchange Volume
-- -- -- --
-- -- -- --
-- -- -- --
-- -- -- --
-- -- -- --