Medtronic has partnered with Merit Medical Systems to distribute the Kyphon KyphoFlex unipedicular balloon catheter for treating VCFs in the US.

The Kyphon KyphoFlex balloon catheter is a steerable solution designed for precise cavity creation in vertebral augmentation procedures.

As per the agreement, Medtronic will handle Kyphon KyphoFlex unipedicular balloon catheter sales, marketing and distribution, while Merit will oversee manufacturing quality and regulatory works, safety controls along with life cycle management.   

Balloon kyphoplasty uses orthopaedic balloons to lift and stabilise collapsed vertebrae caused by osteoporosis, cancer or benign lesions.

The Kyphon KyphoFlex catheter's unique design allows for targeted cavity creation, offering an alternative to Medtronic's existing bipedicular balloon kyphoplasty solutions.

Merit Medical Systems president Joe Wright said: “While we continue to deliver the ARCADIA Steerable portfolio to our physician customers and their patients, this latest effort will help deliver innovative steerable therapies to improve the lives of even more patients.”

The partnership builds on an existing relationship between Medtronic and Merit, with Merit already supplying inflation syringes for balloon kyphoplasty procedures.

Medtronic Neuromodulation business, part of the Neuroscience Portfolio, Pain Interventions vice-president and general manager David Carr said: “We are thrilled to be teaming up with Merit Medical Systems as we look to bring additional choice and flexibility to our interventional therapies portfolio.”

VCFs are the most common osteoporotic fractures and affect 1.4 million individuals across the globe.

In May this year, Medtronic obtained approval from the National Medical Products Administration in China for its Symplicity Spyral renal denervation system.