Cook Medical’s OHNS division launches Hercules balloon

Cook Medical has made its Hercules oesophageal balloon product available to otolaryngologists for the treatment of gastrointestinal strictures.

The Hercules 3-Stage Wire Guided Oesophageal Balloon will become the latest offering from Cook's otolaryngology – head and neck surgery (OHNS) clinical division, while it will also still be available to gastroenterologists through its endoscopy unit.

It functions by being passed through a strictured area while deflated, then inflated to dilate the passage, before being deflated again and removed.

Made with proprietary PET Flex technology to increase its tensile strength and flexibility and available with a preloaded wire guide, the Hercules balloon can also be used to open the lumen so that other procedures – such as biopsies or stent placement – can be performed.

Dr Paul Castellanos, associate professor of surgery at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, said: "Hercules oesophageal dilation balloons are my go-to tools for the controlled dilation of the oesophagus through flexible and rigid instrumentation."

Cook launched its OHNS division in Europe at the end of April 2013, following on from its US introduction last September.