3. Olympus: TJF-Q190V disposable distal endcap
Olympus (TYO:7733) announced in February 2020 that it won FDA clearance for its TJF-Q190V duodenoscope with a sterile, disposable distal endcap.
The TJF-Q190V duodenoscope features a sterile, clear, single-use distal endcap cover that can be removed and discarded after a procedure to prevent reuse. It also offers improved visualization of and access to the distal end for manual cleaning and disinfection. The distal-end flushing adaptor enables cleaning of the elevator mechanism and the sealed elevator wire channel port that doesn’t require separate cleaning.
“Adoption has been steady despite COVID-19 conditions. The endoscope’s performance has been well received as well as the response from infection prevention departments regarding our enhancements to the reprocessing procedure,” Philip Doyle, executive director of marketing for Olympus’s Core GI, told Medical Tubing + Extrusion.
Tokyo-based Olympus said the duodenoscope is designed to improve cleaning and reprocessing of the device to reduce contamination and eliminate deadly superbugs.
“Single-use duodenoscopes incur a very high cost; this is particularly worrisome in the financially-stretched hospital environment of the Covid-19 pandemic. Without much clinical evidence to demonstrate reliable performance of disposable duodenoscopes in non-expert hands, it will be difficult to justify the costs that are inherent to single-use design, particularly in light of the low reported incidence of patient infections related to ERCPs with traditional duodenoscopes,” Doyle said. “We believe that by combining these new disposable and cleaning components with the trusted handling and proven outcomes of an Olympus TJF-Q190V duodenoscope, we can deliver an instrument that emphasizes all aspects of patient health relating to ERCP. And our planned innovations will focus on maintaining that balance while building on clinical performance, cost-effectiveness, and infection prevention.”
