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RF Assure Delivery System Introduced to Improve Birth Safety
[April 02, 2014]

RF Assure Delivery System Introduced to Improve Birth Safety


CARLSBAD, Calif. --(Business Wire)--

RF Surgical Systems Inc. (RFS), the market leader in retained surgical item detection, debuted the RF Assure Delivery System for improving birth safety this week at the 2014 AORN national meeting of perioperative nurses in Chicago. The new system is specifically designed to prevent retained surgical sponges that are used during labor and delivery.

An estimated 22 percent of retained surgical sponges - more than 1,000 annually - are accidentally left inside patients during standard vaginal deliveries. This can cause infections, additional surgery and unnecessary stress. When properly used, the RF Assure Delivery System minimizes the risk of retained sponges by tracking a radio frequency tag (News - Alert) sewn into the corner of each sponge. Since 2006, this Patented technology has dramatically reduced retained surgical sponge incidents in more than 300 U.S. hospitals.

"Tracking surgical sponges with this highly sensitive technology adds minimal cost to a surgery or birth, but pays enormous dividends in peace of mind, patient care and reduced liability," said Dr. Berto Lopez, an obstetrician-gynecologist and chief of the safety committee at West Palm Hospital in West Palm Beach, Florida. "Part of our childbirth protocol after delivery is to weigh the baby and scan the mother for retained sponges. Everyone enefits and is more relaxed."



Unlike the standard RF Assure Detection System that uses a mat and wand to track surgical sponges in patients who are lying down, the RF Assure Delivery System is optimized for women in child birth position. After birth, it is easy for clinicians to scan the mother's pelvic region with the handheld Verisphere™. In only 15 seconds they can be confident their bodies are free of surgical sponges.

"Most doctors and parents agree the birth of a child is a family's most important event. Our goal is to make sure retained surgical sponges don't harm that experience or cause avoidable health problems," said RF Surgical CEO John Buhler.


The RF Assure Delivery System begins shipping to hospitals by July 2014.

About RF Surgical Systems, Inc.

RF Surgical Systems, Inc. is the market leader in the detection and prevention of retained surgical items. The RF Surgical Detection System is the preferred solution in more than 300 U.S. hospitals and surgical centers. A number of US News & World Report "Honor Roll" hospital recipients recently joined the fast-growing list of care providers benefiting from the RF Surgical Detection Technology.

RF Surgical Systems is based in Carlsbad, California. U.S. patents protect the advanced technologies used in the RF Surgical Detection System. Regulatory clearance to market the system was granted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in November 2006. Additional information about RF Surgical Systems, Inc. can be found at www.rfsurg.com.

About AORN

AORN is a non-profit membership association based in Denver, Colorado, that represents the interests of more than 160,000 perioperative nurses by providing nursing education, standards, and clinical practice resources - including the peer-reviewed, monthly publication AORN Journal - to enable optimal outcomes for patients undergoing operative and other invasive procedures. AORN's 44,000 registered nurse members manage, teach, and practice perioperative nursing, are enrolled in nursing education, or are engaged in perioperative research. We define and advance best nursing practices for surgical patients by researching and distributing scientifically based recommendations.


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