[February 15, 2012]

RF Surgical's Radio Frequency Detection System to Be Used by Leading Academic Medical Center to Enhance Patient Safety in the Operating Room

RF Surgical Systems, Inc., the market leader in retained surgical items (RSI) detection, today announced Duke University Medical Center has implemented the RF Assure™ Detection System in all of its operating rooms. The RF Assure System employs radio-frequency (RF) detection technology to identify and prevent the presence of surgical sponges, gauze or towels inside a patient's body following a surgical procedure.

"Ensuring the highest standard of safety for our patients is the number one priority at Duke Medicine," said Marsha Porter, RN, OR director, Duke University Medical Center. "This system, together with our extensive surgical safety processes, further enhances our primary commitment to the delivery of safe and optimal surgical care."

RF Assure features a detection mat placed under the patient on the surgical table. Prior to closure, the system is used to conduct a scan of the surgical site and alert operating room staff if material such as gauze or a sponge remains inside a patient's body. RF Assure is also used to verify that the manual count of surgical materials conducted by the operating room staff is accurate, or to locate any materials that are unaccounted for. With this real-time detection, clinicians are able to efficiently prevent a RSI as well as unnecessary X-rays and repeat surgeries without interrupting workflow, potentiall lowering anesthesia time for patients.

"Consistently named among the top ten U.S. News & World Report's 'Best Hospitals' annual rankings, Duke University Medical Center is at the forefront of advances in patient safety," said Dr. Jeffrey Port, co-founder and chairman of RF Surgical. "We are pleased to support Duke Medicine's excellence in surgical care with a critical tool to prevent error in its operating rooms."

Duke University Medical Center is using the RF Assure System as an adjunct to the standard process of manual counting of surgical materials and reinforces the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) manual counting protocol. RF Assure supplements verification of counting without the need for additional time-consuming processes.

It is estimated that 1,500 to 2,000 retained surgical item cases occur each year in the United States¹. According to a summary of sentinel events reported to The Joint Commission, the number of RSIs nearly doubled in 2010 compared with 2008. Unintended retention of a foreign body is among the top ten sentinel events reported to The Joint Commission².

About RF Surgical Systems, Inc.

RF Surgical Systems, Inc. is the market leader in the detection and prevention of retained surgical sponges. The RF Surgical Detection System is the preferred solution in more than 2,000 operating rooms, trauma and labor and delivery suites nationwide. Recently, more than 100 hospitals and surgical centers, including US News & World Report "Honor Roll" hospitals, have joined the fast-growing list of care providers using RF Surgical Detection Technology. RF Surgical Systems is based in Bellevue, Washington with R & D facilities in San Diego, California. The advanced technologies used in the RF Surgical Detection System are protected by U.S. patents. Regulatory clearance to market the system was granted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in November 2006. The company is online at www.rfsurg.com.

ⁱ Gibbs, Verna, MD, FACS. NoThing Left Behind® project. http://www.nothingleftbehind.org/

ii The Joint Commission, Summary Data of Sentinel Events Reviewed by The Joint Commission http://www.jointcommission.org/sentinel_event_statistics_quarterly/

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