Technology replaces cadavers and animals in kidney stone removal training - MLive.com

HOLLAND TOWNSHIP, MI -- Encoris could have a hand in changing how doctors and medical students practice removing kidney stones.

The Holland company sells a new technology that lets surgeons and medical students practice hands-on simulation for targeting, crushing and removing kidney stones that are too large to pass naturally and require surgery.

"There has been nothing this realistic available for training to date," said Jim TenBrink, Encoris vice president, in a statement.

Traditionally, the training is done on animals and cadavers, he said.

Encoris has partnered with Politecnico di Milano, an Italian scientific university in Milan and Dr. Giorgio Bozzini, a world-renowned urologist and inventor. Bozzini developed the PCNL Boz Kidney Trainer for surgical practice by doctors and medical students.

The 7-pound trainer features life-like skin and subcutaneous tissue layers that simulate body structure around the urinary tract of patients. The technology will be marketed to medical schools, teaching hospitals and medical device companies to provide training on a variety of kidney procedures.

Holland Hospital's radiology department was instrumental in testing the PCNL Boz Trainer for potential use by urology and ultrasound staff, the company said.

"The trainer provided a realistic approximation of common kidney stone positions," said Erik Badger, manager of the hospital's radiology services.

Encoris has exclusive rights to sell the PCNL Boz Kidney Trainer around the world. The deal sets up the company for major growth. Encoris recently moved to a new manufacturing and design plant at 3612 128th St. in Holland Township.

"The introduction of our first medical trainer is a step into a significant new market for Encoris, one that could triple our sales over five years," TenBrink said.

The six-year-old company, with annual sales of about $1.4 million, has had a annual growth rate of about 35 percent. But that growth could easily double in the next two years as the firm expands its reach into the $110 billion U.S. market of medical training and demonstration devices.

Most of the current sales come from custom skeletal models Encoris designs and makes for medical device giants Stryker, Johnson & Johnson and Medtronic.

"The development of the new kidney trainer is a logical product extension of our existing custom designed skeletal bone products which are used for surgical practice in implanting medical devices for spinal surgery and other medical procedures," TenBrink said.

Clear skeletons are $1M business at new Holland facility

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