Grenoble University Hospital First Hospital in France to set up a Multidisciplinary Optical Biopsy Program With the Cellvizio Endomicroscopy Platform

PARIS, March 31, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

Mauna Kea Technologies (Euronext: MKEA, FR0010609263), inventor of Cellvizio®, the multidisciplinary confocal laser endomicroscopy platform, today announced the set-up of an optical biopsy program at the CHU de Grenoble (university hospital center). The CHU de Grenoble is now the first hospital in France to propose to its gastroenterology, interventional pulmonology and urology patients an innovative platform for clinical research and a higher standard of care thanks to the endomicroscopy technology developed by Mauna Kea Technologies.

"We are delighted to be setting up an endomicroscopy program for urology in our department," commented Professor Jean-Luc Descotes, Head of the Urology and Renal Transplantation department and Chairman of the French Urology Association (AFU). "The use of endomicroscopy across multiple areas of urology holds great promise for improving the treatment of conditions affecting a large number of patients."

Several clinical and cost/benefit programs will be launched following the installation of two Cellvizio systems at the Grenoble University Hospital, with practitioners from several specialties. In Gastroenterology, physicians will have a strong focus on the treatment of biliary and pancreatic pathologies. In the field of interventional pulmonology, the hospital will be the first in France to explore the use of optical biopsy to reduce the risks associated with physician biopsies in lung transplant patients, following the ground-breaking work performed at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida.

"Our long tradition of innovative patient care is paying off once again with the set-up of a full optical biopsy program in partnership with a French company," stated Mrs. Jacqueline Hubert, CEO of the Grenoble University Hospital, "Our practitioners will be able to harness crucial additional information when making their therapeutic decisions, which will definitely help to reduce the number of unnecessary procedures, while providing better options to numerous patients with digestive, pulmonary and urological conditions."

About Mauna Kea Technologies 

Mauna Kea Technologies is a global medical device company focused on leading innovation in endomicroscopy and optical biopsy. The company designs, develops and markets innovative tools to visualize and detect cell abnormalities in real time during standard gastrointestinal and pulmonary endoscopy procedures. The company's flagship product, Cellvizio®, a probe-based Confocal Laser Endomicroscopy (pCLE) system, provides physicians and researchers with high-resolution cellular imaging of internal tissues. Large- scale, international, multi-center clinical trials have demonstrated Cellvizio's ability to help physicians to more accurately detect early forms of diseases and make immediate treatment decisions. Designed to help physicians in their diagnoses, provide patients with better treatment and reduce hospital costs, the Cellvizio system can be used with practically all endoscopes. Cellvizio has 510(k) clearance from the United States Food and Drug Administration and CE Marking in the European Union for use in the gastrointestinal tract and the urinary and respiratory systems, for endoscopic exploration of the biliary and pancreatic ducts, and for fine-needle aspiration procedures. Cellvizio also obtained SFDA regulatory approval in China and MHLW approval in Japan.

For more information on Mauna Kea Technologies, visit http://www.maunakeatech.com

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SOURCE Mauna Kea Technologies