Thermage Calls Syneron Countersuit Without Merit

Thermage, a leader in innovative aesthetic devices based on proprietary radiofrequency technology, today characterized the countersuit filed on January 10, 2005, by Syneron as without merit. In July 2004, Thermage filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Syneron’s Aurora, Polaris, and Galaxy systems. Thermage claims Syneron infringes six patents.

“Syneron has resorted to a common tactic of deflecting attention from its own infringement by purchasing and asserting an old patent from a third party that discloses technology fundamentally different from that invented and used by Thermage,” said Thermage President and CEO Bob Byrnes. “This is an attempt to distract stakeholders from the merits of our own very strong infringement lawsuit against Syneron, which is based on six solid patents containing over 100 claims,” stated Byrnes.

Thermage commercially launched its ThermaCool™ system for tissue tightening and contouring in July 2002 and now has over 1200 systems installed worldwide. In June 2004, the ThermaCool system received FDA clearance for full-face treatment, adding to the clearance obtained in November 2002 for treatment of periorbital (around the eyes) wrinkles and rhytids.

The ThermaCool system uses capacitive radiofrequency (CRF) technology to non-invasively generate deep, uniform, volumetric heating of surface tissue to tighten and contour both skin and underlying tissue, while protecting the skin’s outer layer with a cooling cryogen spray. The deep volumetric heating action promotes immediate collagen contraction beneath the skin surface and generates new collagen growth over time.

Contacts:
Dennis Kovach, Thermage
510.782.2286