Gemalto-owned Cinterion has inked a deal with TZ Medical to embed a cellular wireless chip into the medical device company's heart arrhythmia monitoring device, Aera-CT, which the companies expect to launch in North America during the third quarter. TZ explains that the device can monitor patients for up to 28 days and also enables care providers to communicate with patients via the device.
The device aims to make it easier to detect heart arrhythmias during normal day-to-day activities. The device makes use of "as few as" three electrodes, the companies' press release states. The device enables 24/7 monitoring for arrhythmias and provides access to the monitoring data to patients, physicians and other authorized caregivers through a secure portal.
“Today, there are around four million people in the US alone that need care for recurring arrhythmias and the medical community requires best-in-class technology for detection and monitoring. Aera-CT is poised to play a critical role in addressing that need.” stated Bob Doerr, TZ Medical project manager in the release.
According to the device's spec sheet (PDF) the Aera-CT is still pending FDA 510(k) clearance.
TZ Medical's competition in the arrhythmia detection field includes other wireless health companies like CardioNet, LifeWatch, eCardio, Corventis, Curvus and others.
More in TZ's press release below:
PRESS RELEASE: Cinterion and TZ Medical Announce Advanced Heart Monitoring M2M Device to Improve the Lives of Millions Affected by Arrhythmia Disorders
Cinterion, the global leader in cellular machine-to-machine (M2M) communication modules and a Gemalto (Euronext NL 0000400653 GTO) company, and TZ Medical, a leading manufacturer of critical-care medical products, today announced Aera-CT™, a lightweight and cost effective mHealth heart arrhythmia monitoring device. Equipped with the Cinterion MC75i module, the Aera-CT is expected to be commercially available in North America in Q3, 2011 followed by rolling launches throughout the world.
The Cinterion-enabled Aera-CT improves the ability to rapidly detect heart arrhythmias during normal day-to-day activities and over long periods of time. Designed for ease-of-use and comfort, the discreet device is placed on the patient with as few as three electrodes.
Cinterion’s module enables secure and reliable communication of detailed diagnostic data via cellular networks and the Internet, providing patients and their physicians with 24/7 monitoring and improved detection and visibility of arrhythmia events. Authorized caregivers can securely view patient data at anytime, from anywhere in the world to determine treatment approaches.
“M2M-enabled medical devices are revolutionizing the way healthcare is delivered and driving impressive growth in the mHealth sector,” said Peter Fowler, Cinterion’s regional president for the Americas. “Together, TZ Medical and Cinterion are developing cutting-edge M2M heart monitoring technology to help reduce hospital stays and healthcare costs, while improving patient care and ensuring patients’ data privacy is protected – it’s a win-win business case with strong and visible social benefits.”
“We rely on Cinterion-Gemalto, with their 10 years of mHealth experience, for intelligent engineering as well as highly secure and reliable technology to enable Aera-CT’s 24/7 patient support,” said Bob Doerr, TZ Medical project manager. “Today, there are around four million people in the US alone that need care for recurring arrhythmias andthe medical community requires best-in-class technology for detection and monitoring. Aera-CT is poised to play a critical role in addressing that need.”
Note to editors
Cinterion’s high quality modules are engineered to meet rigorous M2M requirements for security, longevity and environmental extremes. They are Full Type Approved and pre-approved by global mobile network operators to help ensure a swift and cost effective time to market for OEMs and integrators.
For more information on Cinterion modules, please visit www.cinterion.com. For more information about Aera-CT and TZ Medical, go to www.tzmedical.com.
About TZ Medical
TZ Medical develops products for the Electrophysiology (EP), cardiac and critical-care communities. Over the years, TZ Medical has built a solid reputation on both listening to and understanding the needs of medical professionals. The result is optimal solutions delivering quality products that improve patient care while protecting the administrator's bottom line.
TZ Medical's corporate headquarters are located in Portland, Oregon, with sales and support functions nationwide. TZ Medical is proud to be part of Premier Inc., a hospital performance improvement alliance with over 1,700 participating not-for-profit hospitals and health systems serving communities across the country.
TZ Medical products and solutions can be found in hospitals, critical-care clinics and medical offices worldwide. Our commitment to excellence with the products we manufacture and the services we provide is underlined by our commitment to the medical professionals who use them. This commitment, combined with our passion for life-saving innovation, is what makes TZ Medical. For more information, please visit: www.tzmedical.com.
About Cinterion
Cinterion, a Gemalto company, is the global leader of cellular machine-to-machine (M2M) communication modules. Combining unparalleled M2M engineering expertise and localized worldwide customer support, with a strong portfolio of cutting-edge GSM, GPRS, EDGE, UMTS and HSPA products, Cinterion provides complete M2M solutions encompassing wireless modules and MIMs (Machine Identity Module) through to server platforms and managed services. Cinterion is a reliable partner valued by diverse vertical market customers for its award-winning M2M technology which enables machines, equipment and vehicles to communicate over wireless networks, helping enterprises dramatically cut costs and increase efficiency. Cinterion products are carrier and FTA approved and are deployed in industries including: healthcare, automotive and eToll, metering, remote maintenance and control, payment systems, routers and gateways, security systems, tracking and tracing, environmental monitoring and more. Cinterion is part of the Gemalto group (Euronext NL 0000400653 GTO), the world leader in digital security with revenues of €1.9 billion in 2010, and over 10 thousand employees operating out of 87 offices and 13 Research & Development centers in 45 countries. For more information, please visit: www.cinterion.com.
About Gemalto
Gemalto (Euronext NL0000400653 GTO) is the world leader in digital security with 2010 annual revenues of €1.9 billion and over 10,000 employees operating out of 87 offices and 13 Research & Development centers in 45 countries.
Gemalto is at the heart of our evolving digital society. Billions of people worldwide increasingly want the freedom to communicate, travel, shop, bank, entertain, and work—anytime, anywhere, in ways that are convenient, enjoyable and secure. Gemalto delivers on the growing demands for personal mobile services, identity protection, payment security, authenticated online services, cloud computing access, modern transportation, e-healthcare and e-government services. Gemalto does this by providing secure software, a wide range of secure personal devices, and managed services to wireless operators, banks, enterprises and government agencies.
Gemalto is the world leader for electronic passports and identity cards, two-factor authentication devices for online protection, smart credit/debit and contactless payment cards, as well as subscriber identification modules (SIM) and universal integrated circuit cards (UICC) in mobile phones. Also, in the emerging machine-to-machine applications Gemalto is a leading supplier of wireless modules and machine identification modules (MIM). To operate these solutions and remotely manage the software and confidential data contained in the secure devices Gemalto also provides server platforms, consulting, training, and managed services to help its customers achieve their goals.
As the use of Gemalto’s software and secure devices increases with the number of people interacting in the digital and wireless world, the Company is poised to thrive over the coming years.
For more information visit www.gemalto.com, www.justaskgemalto.com, blog.gemalto.com,, or follow @gemalto on twitter.
