ClearFlow, a medical device company based in Anaheim, is currently exhibiting its innovative PleuraFlow Active Clearance Technology System at the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) 51st Annual Meeting in San Diego.

ClearFlow’s PleuraFlow System uses a first of its kind technology to enable caregivers to proactively keep chest drainage tubes clear of blood clotting in the early hours after heart surgery.

PleuraFlow’s appearance and display at STS follows on the heels of Maquet Medical Systems USA’s announcement last week that the companies have agreed to an exclusive distribution agreement for the PleuraFlow System in the US.

"We are very pleased to form this alliance with such a renowned and well-respected medical device company," said ClearFlow President & CEO, Paul Molloy.

"Maquet is the world market leader in thoracic drainage for patients recovering from heart and lung surgery. We share Maquet’s goals of improving patient outcomes and reducing hospital costs with highly innovative novel medical device technologies, and look forward to a mutually beneficial relationship."

PleuraFlow also recently announced compelling clinical data on the use of the device. The clinical data was presented at the Cardiovascular-Thoracic (CVT) Critical Care 2014 annual meeting last October, organized by the Foundation for the Advancement of CardioThoracic Surgical Care (FACTS-Care) in Washington, DC.

A common issue in hospitals, chest tube clogging is known to occur in over one-third of heart surgery patients, and nearly one in five can have some form of complication that includes the need to perform subsequent re-operation or interventions to remove blood, blood clot or bloody fluid from the pericardial or pleural spaces after cardiac surgery. These complications are referred to as Retained Blood Syndrome (RBS).

Procedures to remove retained blood are the most common invasive reinterventions after heart surgery and atrial fibrillation is the most common complication after heart surgery. PleuraFlow is the only medical device on the market that significantly lowers both these common and expensive preventable hospital complications.

The company is currently raising capital to expand its product offering and market reach. The PleuraFlow Active Clearance Technology System is approved for use in the US, Europe, Australia, Brazil, and Canada, and has either cleared or is pending clearance in over a dozen additional countries.