Olympus Rolls Out Single-Use Foreign Body Retrieval Devices

Olympus released its line of single-use Foreign Body Retrieval devices, offering physicians options for a variety of needs, while meeting the demands of infection prevention initiatives.
 
Olympus offers a wide range of specialized single-use grasping forceps to assist in the retrieval of foreign bodies, stents and excised tissue such as polyps. The single-use products, six of which are brand new, replace the reusable devices previously available.
 
Foreign bodies lodged in the gastrointestinal tract, such as marbles, coins or batteries, can be challenging to retrieve. In 2019, accidental ingestion of foreign bodies accounted for 501,566 visits among all age groups to emergency rooms in the U.S. or 2 percent of all ER visits.¹
 
Children ages less than 1 year old through 4 years old accounted for 106,729 of the ER visits for foreign body ingestion in 2019, the fourth most common reason for trips to the emergency room.² A study published by the American Academy of Pediatrics estimated that more than 759,000 children under the age of 6 were evaluated for foreign-body ingestion in emergency rooms between 1995-2015. At nearly 62 percent of the cases, coins were the most frequently ingested item followed by toys (10.3 percent), jewelry (7 percent) and batteries (6.8 percent).³
 
As part of a corporate strategy unveiled in November 2019, Olympus announced it would complement its product portfolio with single-use devices to address procedure-specific requirements, the need for urgent procedure preparation and improved workflow. In an emergent case, quick access to the best tools for the situation is critical.
 
Although the full-line of seven foreign body retrieval devices draw upon the most state-of-the-art design and manufacturing, there are stand-outs in the lineup. The Olympus portfolio includes, for example, the proprietary FG-244NR grasping forceps that feature a rotatable design for easy positioning. The device’s rat tooth jaws with a 7.2 mm opening width are designed for retrieving drainage tubes and foreign bodies. The design of the FG-220P grasping forceps incorporates rubber tips for the removal of flat objects such as coins, sharp objects, soft objects, and stents.
 
“Infection prevention is of the utmost importance to Olympus and our customers,” said Melinda Benedict, Global Senior Manager of Infection Prevention at Olympus Corporation of the Americas. “In a variety of emergent cases or in situations involving very ill patients, physicians need to have all options for care available. A comprehensive line of single-use grasping forceps provides physicians with the confidence that they will have quick and safe access to the tools they need, where and when they need them.”
 
In recent years, a worldwide trend has started to shift from reusable devices to single use, and Olympus has responded by adapting its medical device portfolio to meet customer and patient needs.
 
References
¹ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System
² Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System
³ Orsagh-Yentis, D., McAdams, R.J., Roberts, K.J., McKenzie, L.B. “Foreign-Body Ingestions of Young Children Treated in US Emergency Departments: 1995-2015.” Pediatrics May 2019, 143 (5) e20181988; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2018-1988