New Welch Allyn Devices Feature Masimo SET Pulse Oximetry Option

Skaneateles Falls, N.Y., May 18, 2007 -- Welch Allyn, a leading global manufacturer of frontline medical products and solutions, and Masimo Corporation, the inventor of Pulse CO-Oximetry and Read-Through Motion and Low Perfusion pulse oximetry, have partnered to incorporate Masimo SET pulse oximetry into new versions of the Welch Allyn Spot Vital Signs and Welch Allyn Propaq LT devices. The two devices allow clinicians to effectively spot check and monitor patients respectively in ambulatory and acute care settings, and can be easily configured for efficient, safe and accurate operation by caregivers with varying levels of training and sophistication.

Masimo SET is the most accurate and reliable pulse oximetry technology in the world, clinically proven in more than 100 independent and objective studies to provide the most trustworthy arterial blood oxygen saturation and pulse rate measurements even under the most difficult clinical conditions, including patient motion and low peripheral perfusion. These studies prove Masimo SET delivers improvements in outcomes, safety and efficiency while decreasing costs.

"We are very pleased to extend our current business relationship with Masimo as we strive to offer our customers the safest and most accurate monitoring technologies available," said Doug Linquest, executive vice president, Monitoring and Defibrillation at Welch Allyn. "By continuing to integrate Masimo SET pulse oximetry technology into our extensive line of spot-check and monitoring systems, we are able to give caregivers the capability to monitor SpO2 in more patients in places they never thought possible."

Spot Vital Signs is a fully automated, multiparameter spot-check device that captures noninvasive blood pressure measurements using the oscillometric method. In addition to a pulse oximetry option, it also offers Welch Allyn's SureTemp® fast predictive thermometry which gives providers the option of performing oral, axillary or rectal temperature readings. Spot Vital Signs can also transfer data from the device into patients' electronic medical records (EMR) via infrared connectivity, and is designed to interface with the Welch Allyn Connex(TM) Data Management System in acute care settings.

The Propaq LT patient monitor can be used in a number of bedside, transport and ambulatory applications. It is deployable in areas in and outside the hospital, and comes equipped to monitor heart rate, 3- or 5-lead ECG, noninvasive blood pressure, SpO2, and respiration with an easy-to-use interface. It features a full-color LCD screen and can be configured for use on neonatal, pediatric and adult patients. The Propaq LT can be operated in standalone mode or wirelessly networked to Welch Allyn's Acuity Central Monitoring Station, and it can easily download data to a PC and customer EMRs.

"One of Welch Allyn's top priorities is to bring patient monitoring to the presently unmonitored bed, which makes up over 80 percent of today's hospital beds," added Linquest. "These beds are typically general care or medical-surgical beds and require advanced and connected spot-check vital signs devices. The new Propaq LT monitor effectively bridges the gap (cost, size and complexity) between today's continuous patient monitors and spot-check devices like Spot Vital Signs that offer even more comprehensive clinical benefits to the unmonitored bed."

"This partnership confirms the strength of our business relationship with Welch Allyn and the commitment of both companies to bring best-in-class patient monitoring technology to new clinical sites," said Joe E. Kiani, chairman and CEO of Masimo Corporation. "We are happy that by partnering with Welch Allyn, we can offer the proven benefits of Masimo SET pulse oximetry to more clinicians and patients in more diverse clinical settings."

For more information about Welch Allyn vital signs capture and monitoring devices, please call 800.535.6663 or visit www.welchallyn.com.

About Welch Allyn
Welch Allyn, Inc. was founded in 1915 and is today a leading manufacturer of innovative medical diagnostic and therapeutic devices, cardiac defibrillators, patient monitoring systems, and miniature precision lamps. Headquartered in Skaneateles Falls, New York, USA, Welch Allyn employs more than 2,300 people and has numerous manufacturing, sales, and distribution facilities located throughout the world. Additional information on Welch Allyn and its products may be found at www.welchallyn.com.

About Redding Medical

Redding Medical is a direct distributor of Welch Allyn products. You may purchase the Welch Allyn Spot Vital Signs on our website at:  www.reddingmedical.com   Redding Medical has been serving the medical community since 1975.


About Masimo
Masimo develops innovative monitoring technologies that significantly improve patient care--helping solve "unsolvable" problems. In 1995, the company debuted Read-Through Motion and Low Perfusion pulse oximetry, known as SET, and with it virtually eliminated false alarms and increased pulse oximetry's ability to detect life-threatening events. More than 100 independent clinical studies have confirmed that Masimo SET technology allows clinicians to accurately monitor blood oxygen saturation in critical care situations--establishing the technology as the "gold standard" pulse oximetry and substantially contributing to improved patient outcomes. In 2005 Masimo introduced Masimo Rainbow SET Pulse CO-Oximetry, which, for the first time, noninvasively monitors the level of carbon monoxide and methemoglobin in the blood, allowing early detection and treatment of potentially life-threatening conditions. Masimo, founded in 1989, has the mission of "Improving Patient Outcomes and Reducing Cost of Care by Taking Noninvasive Monitoring to New Sites and Applications." Additional information about Masimo and its products may be found at www.masimo.com.