Medicrea has launched LigaPASS 2.0 generation—Medicrea’s band connector technology for posterior thoraco-lumbar fixation—in the USA. The technology features numerous improvements and is now cleared for use in adolescent idiopathic and neuromuscular scoliosis patients 10 years of age and older in addition to adults.
With over 5,000 LigaPASS systems implanted worldwide in the past two years, Medicrea’s proprietary technology provides surgeons with a safe and efficient alternative solution to screws and hooks that allows translation and derotation of vertebral bodies. The new generation system features an extended range of connectors, a band with a narrower malleable tip to allow for safer passage underneath the lamina and a dual-band option, which allows surgeons to pass two bands underneath the lamina at once, saving considerable time during neuromuscular cases.
“The LigaPASS which is the only sub-laminar band technology truly offering de-rotation capabilities, has become an integral part of my surgical treatment for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis patients,” said Afshin Aminian, a paediatric orthopaedic surgeon and medical director at Children’s Hospital of Orange County, USA. “I have been using it for over three years and the clinical outcomes have been excellent. Through improved features such as the thinner malleable tip and dual-band option, this latest version offers even greater capabilities and ease of use to meet my needs in the operating room, and will allow surgeons to provide optimal care to their patients.”
The LigaPASS 2.0 generation is universal. Every connector can be used with the most common rod diameters available on the market (from 5.5–6mm). The range now includes two new connectors: the LigaPASS LP and the LigaPASS Open. With its extra-low profile design, the LigaPASS LP Connector offers greater capabilities for operating on very difficult neuromuscular cases and young, small patients. LigaPASS Open is an open connector that can be inserted onto the rod of an already existing construct, offering placement versatility at any stage during the surgery.
“For small osteopenic neuromuscular scoliosis patients, LigaPASS 2.0 provides an excellent alternative to pedicle screws without compromising fixation,” said Samuel R Rosenfeld, a paediatric orthopaedic surgeon and director of the Spina Bifida Clinic, Muscular Dystrophy Clinic and Spasticity Clinics at Children’s Hospital of Orange County, USA. “With version 2.0, Medicrea has taken this band technology to another level, not only by improving the design and performance, but also by creating a full range of LigaPASS components that can address any adolescent idiopathic scoliosis or neuromuscular case.”
