News Release

InHealth Technologies Introduces The New Blom-Singer™ HME System

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CARPINTERIA, California, January 11, 2008—InHealth Technologies, a division of Helix Medical, LLC, announced today the market introduction of its new Blom-Singer™ HME System for laryngectomees. The Blom-Singer™ HME System (U.S. PATENT 7,025,784) is a two-piece unit that consists of an HME cartridge and a TruSeal® adhesive housing.

The HME cartridge contains a HumidiFilter® foam filter for heat and moisture exchange, a speech button for speaking, and an integrated MucusShield™ occluder for HumidiFilter protection and air-tight seal for occlusion. The market launch of the Blom-Singer™ HME System furthers InHealth’s mission of developing the best products available to improve the lives of laryngectomees throughout the world.

The Blom-Singer™ HME System features the innovative EasyTouch™ speech button that makes stoma occlusion simple. Users need only depress the EasyTouch button with minimal manual force, and it closes to produce voice.

“The fingertip, tactile response users feel when they press the EasyTouch button is immediate,” says Jobeth Erickson, Vice President & General Manager, InHealth Technologies. “Users can feel when it’s completely closed, so they can speak with more confidence. When they release the EasyTouch button, it instantly returns its open, breathing position.”

Ms. Erickson goes on to say, “An additional feature is the integrated MucusShield occluder that provides protection to the HumidiFilter from mucus secretions while creating an air-tight seal closure (occlusion) for speech.”

The Blom-Singer™ HME System does not require a prescription (USA) and is eligible for reimbursement for Medicare patients (USA). It is a daily-disposable device that comes fully assembled in a 30-day supply. Users simply put on a new one each day and discard the previous day’s unit.

The Blom-Singer™ HME System helps laryngectomees improve their quality of life by serving as a partial replacement for lost nasal functions. It does this by capturing warm and moist air
in a filter as it is exhaled from the body. Cool, dry air that is breathed in passes through the filter where it is warmed and moistened as it enters the body.  This effectively protects the trachea and lower airway from drying and cooling without obstructing the ability to breathe or speak.  

Consecutive daily use of the Blom-Singer™ HME System contributes to a healthier respiratory tract and restores airflow resistance. This is essential in supplying the body with oxygen and eliminating carbon dioxide, and in maintaining optimal lung ventilation. The result of which can be less coughing and up to a 60% reduction in mucus when used according to the manufacturer’s instructions for at least seven consecutive days.

Since 1989, InHealth Technologies has been the exclusive worldwide developer and manufacturer of Blom-Singer voice restoration products. In 1978, Drs. Mark Singer and Eric Blom pioneered the tracheoesophageal puncture technique and valved voice prosthesis for post-laryngectomy voice restoration that, for the past 30 years, has stood as the international standard for voice restoration.

For more information about InHealth Technologies, Blom-Singer voice restoration products and the new Blom-Singer™ HME System, contact InHealth’s customer service team at: (800) 477-5969 or (805) 684-9337.