Report forecasts growth for global trauma fixation device market

Global orthopedic trauma fixation devices market to reach $9.3B by 2020; the global orthopedic trauma fixation devices market is expected to grow to $9.3 billion by 2020, according to a Transparency Market Research report.

FDA cuts fiscal 2015 user fees

The FDA is cutting the fiscal 2015 user fees paid by medical device companies to have their products reviewed by 3% across the board.

Google wearables to add to planned bioinformatics database

Google isn’t just searching the Internet.  The company will soon search the insides of people’s bodies for new biomarkers by collecting their urine, blood, saliva and tears as part of its Baseline Study initiative.

NIH to spur innovation in new therapeutic areas

The National Institutes of Health is launching three new programs in emerging areas with the lofty goal of transforming biomedical research in the next 5 to 10 years.

Wearable optical device detects diabetic complication

Complications of diabetes are more easily treated when they are found early.  Researchers at National Taiwan University Hospital have developed a wearable optical device to detect diabetic autonomic neuropathy, a common diabetic complication, that could be better than existing detection methods.

CDC takes steps to improve lab safety after anthrax, flu scares

In response to back-to-back incidents involving government laboratories, a top official at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has resigned, and the agency has assembled a safety board to address concerns that have arisen after workers were potentially exposed to anthrax and H5N1 flu.

FDA final guidance modifies 510(k) rules, discourages use of multiple predicate devices

In a new final guidance issued in July, the FDA announced that it will frown upon the use of multiple predicate devices in 510(k) submissions, unlike when it cleared metal-on-metal hip implants, which the Agency later said can damage surrounding bones and contaminate the body by releasing ions into the bloodstream.