UniPerc™ Kit Wins Gold Award

Smiths Medical, a leading global medical device manufacturer, today announced that its Portex® UniPerc® Percutaneous Tracheostomy Kit was named the winner of a 2010 Medical Design Excellence Gold Award. This is the highest designation given by the Medical Design Excellence Awards (MDEA) competition (www.MDEAwards.com), which is presented by the publishers of Medical Device & Diagnostic Industry magazine.

Presented today at the MDEA Awards Ceremony at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City, the Gold Award is Smiths Medical’s first.

The Portex® UniPerc® Percutaneous Tracheostomy Kit is the first dedicated percutaneous tracheostomy option with tubes specifically designed for patients with larger necks. Its products and components have been designed to make percutaneous insertions into large necks quicker, safer and more effective than standard tubes. Percutaneous refers to a medical procedure where access to inner organs or other tissue is achieved through the skin. The UniPerc® range is particularly suitable for patients who have large, muscular, bull or obese necks, which pose unique challenges for healthcare providers. The proprietary features of the UniPerc® allow the tracheostomy tube to be used where standard tubes are inappropriate.

“It is a tremendous honor that the organizers of the MDEA competition selected one of our products for a Gold Award,” said Srini Seshadri, president of Smiths Medical. “This is a significant recognition of the unique design and hard work that went into the development of our UniPerc® products, which help healthcare professionals meet the needs of an underserved patient population with greater effectiveness and overall comfort.”

The MDEA Competition is the only awards program that recognizes contributions and advances in the design of medical products, based on:

• Design and engineering features, including innovative use of materials
• User-related functions that improve healthcare delivery, or change traditional medical attitudes or practices
• Features that provide enhanced benefits to the patient
• The ability of the product development team to overcome design and engineering challenges so that the product meets its clinical objectives.

About Smiths Medical
Smiths Medical www.smiths-medical.com is a leading supplier of specialist medical devices and equipment for global markets, focusing on the medication delivery, vital care and safety devices market segments. It is part of Smiths Group www.smiths.com, a global leader in applying advanced technologies for markets in threat and contraband detection, energy, medical devices, communications and engineered components. Smiths Group employs around 22,000 people in more than 50 countries.