Hannover, 8 March 2019.

• New MAGNEZIX^® StarFuse^® product line developed especially for forefoot surgery in co-operation with experts.

• Besides hallux valgus (bunions), magnesium implants can now be used to treat other common deformities, such as hammer or claw toes.

• New product line offers combination of unique material and patented design coupled with a geometry that is innovative worldwide in the field of implants.

• First operations have already convinced users and patients.

• Fourth Syntellix product line has been granted approval throughout Europe (CE certification).

Syntellix AG, a leading developer and manufacturer of highly innovative, globally unique magnesium implants for orthopaedics and trauma surgery, has announced the launch of its new MAGNEZIX^® StarFuse^® product line. Until now, the MedTech company has mainly supplied universally applicable implants, such as compression screws and pins, and this is the first time it has launched a special implant for a strictly defined area of application.

StarFuse^® implants are used to stiffen toe joints (PIP arthrodeses) in the surgical correction of so-called hammer or claw toes, which often occur in connection with a hallux valgus (bunion), from which over 10 million people in Germany suffer. With the new StarFuse^® and the other proven products from its MAGNEZIX^® portfolio (CS, CBS and Pin), Syntellix now offers a system solution for foot surgery to treat deformities comprehensively using advanced magnesium implants.

The new implant was developed in close co-operation with orthopaedists and foot surgeons; its highly innovative and patented design features unique stop fins and distinctive star-shaped longitudinal grooves, which enable the user to insert the implant easily and safely. It is available in three different sizes (small, medium and large), either straight (0°) or angled (10°).

Like all MAGNEZIX^® implants that have been supplied so far, the StarFuse^® implant also offers the special benefits of this trend-setting magnesium-based material: the material is metallic but is broken down by the body and converted into bone tissue; moreover, it has mechanical properties very similar to those of bone, such as high stability and elasticity. In addition, magnesium stimulates bone growth osteo-conductively, is infection-inhibiting and is particularly well tolerated. There are no known allergies.

Shortly after the implants became commercially available for the first time, very interested and forward-looking doctors were already using them on a regular basis in operations; in all cases, feedback was very positive. According to Dr Hubert Klauser, medical director of the HFZ Hand- und Fusszentrum Berlin, “the implants function excellently” and “are a ‘must’ for every foot surgeon”. John Göddertz, head of the Department for Foot and Ankle Surgery at the Fachklinik 360° in Ratingen, was also very satisfied with the outcome of his surgery and is already looking forward to “performing more operations”.

With CE certification, the new Syntellix product line is approved for use throughout Europe. For example, as part of this week’s European launch of the brand, several leading Spanish hospitals, including one of Europe's largest hospitals in Madrid, declared their interest in using the new implants immediately.

About Syntellix: 

Syntellix is an internationally operating medical technology company with headquarters in Hannover, Germany, that is undergoing dynamic growth. The company specialises in the research and development and marketing and sales of highly innovative transformable metallic implants. Products made from the company’s patented MAGNEZIX^® are unique. In a widely acclaimed publication, they were evaluated as being superior clinically to the titanium implants commonly used. The implants break down in the body and are transformed into the body's own bone tissue, and in doing so offer an ideal combination of stability, elasticity and bioabsorbability.

Syntellix is the world's market and technology leader in the field of bioabsorbable metallic orthopaedic implants and has already been honoured with numerous important awards and prizes. In Germany these include the German Business Innovation Award 2012/13, the Future Award 2016 of the German healthcare industry, the German Medical Award 2017, the STEP Award 2017 and the Innovator of the Year 2017 award; internationally the implants were a winner in the Product of the Year category of the Sustainability Award 2018 program.