The FDA has approved the Aloxi(R) (palonosetron hydrochloride) injection for the prevention of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) for up to 24 hours after surgery. The injection has been developed by Eisai Corporation of North America, its U.S. subsidiary, MGI Pharma, and Helsinn Healthcare SA. Aloxi already had FDA approval, since 2003, for the prevention of acute and delayed nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy.

Mazor Surgical Technologies has received CE Mark Certification for its DiscAssist guidance and positioning system for disc replacement surgery. DiscAssist helps doctors to plan the appropriate size and placement of artificial discs in interverteberal disc replacement surgery. The company aims at filing for FDA approval in the US and expected to receive the same by the end of 2008.

A little more than 5% of patients undergoing breast surgery developed infections at the incision site, resulting in more than $4,000 extra hospital-related costs per patient, according to research reported in the January Archives of Surgery. The research headed by Dr. Margaret A. Olsen of the Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis showed that 50 of the 949 women studied, who had undergone mastectomy or breast reconstruction, developed surgical site infections within a year.