Smiths Launches LockIt Plus(TM) Catheter Securement Device.

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Smiths Medical, part of the global engineering business Smiths Group, announced today that it has launched the LockIt Plus(TM) Catheter Securement Device, a new catheter fixation product designed to secure regional anesthesia catheters at skin level and prevent migration.

LockIt Plus(TM) devices are ideal for stabilizing a catheter on a patient where a great deal of movement and activity occurs, such as labor and delivery, peri-operative, and post-operative pain control settings. When medications are being delivered into the epidural space, it is critical that the epidural catheter be kept in place to ensure effective pain management. Migration or movement of the catheter is a common reason for failed pain blocks.

The LockIt Plus(TM) device consists of a large adhesive pad with an easy-to-peel backing that makes application easy and ensures adherence to the skin, and a transparent locking mechanism that allows clinicians to view the catheter exit site. After an epidural catheter is inserted into a patient, a LockIt Plus(TM) device is threaded over the catheter and adhered to the patient over the insertion site. Once adhered, the clear latch is closed to fixate the catheter to the skin. The device is available for catheters used with 16 and 17 gauge epidural needles. The same device for use with 18g needles will be released in the near future.

With the addition of LockIt Plus(TM) catheter securement devices, Smiths Medical now provides anesthesiologists with an even broader range of product choices to meet their preferences for labor and delivery, surgical anesthesia, and post-operative pain management. Smiths Medical offers Portex(R) continuous and single-shot epidural catheter trays, CSEcure(R) matched CSE needle sets, DuraFlex(R) Plus wire reinforced catheters, the Tracer(R) III Nerve Stimulator, CADD-Prizm(R) PCS II ambulatory infusion pump, and the CADD-Legacy(R) PCA ambulatory infusion pump.

For more information, visit www.smiths-medical.com or call 1-800-258-5361.

Smiths Medical

Smiths Medical is a supplier of specialist medical devices to global markets. Smiths Medical comprises three product groupings: Safety Devices, Critical Care and Medication Delivery & Patient Monitoring (MDPM). Smiths Medical customers include hospitals and other healthcare providers worldwide. Smiths Medical employs nearly 7,500 people.

Smiths Group

Smiths is a global engineering business, listed on the London Stock Exchange. Smiths focuses on high performance applications, building and sustaining market-leading businesses in growth sectors. It reaches deep into global markets taking its manufacturing closer to its customers. Smiths has four divisions: Aerospace, Detection, Medical and Specialty. It employs 32,000 people and has over 250 major facilities in 50 countries. For more information visit www.smiths-group.com