Olympus today announced an exclusive global distribution agreement with Endocision for a portable, single-use flexible cryocatheter system.
Under the agreement, Olympus will serve as the exclusive global distributor of the Endocision platform designed to support a variety of diagnostic and therapeutic bronchoscopic procedures. Olympus and Endocision expect commercial launch in the U.S., Canada and Europe early next year.
The agreement will expand and enhance Olympus' respiratory portfolio, which includes endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) that plays a key role in the visualization and biopsy of lung tissue and lymph nodes.
The system's portable design does not require an electric source or large CO2 tanks to operate, expanding access to cryobiopsy and cryoextraction into multiple care settings throughout the hospital such as bronchoscopy suites, ICUs, operating rooms and emergency departments.
Cryotechnology has become an important tool in interventional pulmonology and thoracic endoscopy, supporting both tissue acquisition and therapeutic airway interventions. Clinical applications may include transbronchial cryobiopsy for tissue acquisition, cryoextraction of foreign bodies, blood clots, and mucus plugs, as well as endobronchial tumor debulking and airway recanalization procedures.
Published studies have demonstrated that cryobiopsy can provide larger tissue specimens with less compression-related tissue damage (reduced crush artifact) compared with conventional forceps biopsy, potentially supporting histopathologic and molecular analyses.
