Integra will pay up to $400m for ACell to expand its wound management and soft-tissue repair product line. The deal is part of a larger restructuring plan that includes selling its orthopedics business.

The US Food and Drug Administration announced two class I recalls on 24 May. The recalls cover Integra’s LimiTorr Volume Limiting cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) drainage system and the MoniTorr intracranial pressure external CSF drainage and monitoring systems, as well as clinical platforms in Edwards’ EV1000 series.

An intended licensing agreement between Wuzhou Zhongheng Group and Oramed for diabetes drugs may have fallen apart, but Zhongheng will continue to acquire new products abroad as part of its development strategy, while Oramed has tied up with another partner in the large and growing Chinese diabetes market, which has already attracted many multinationals.

With the economy improving and the total joint market slowly recovering, one of the brightest spots in the orthopedics industry is the market for shoulder replacements. While 2012 growth rates of total hips and knees are forecast in the low single digits – at 3% and 1%, respectively – the US shoulder replacement market is growing at a brisk 9.7% pace and is expected to reach approximately $620 million in revenues this year.