PLAINSBORO, N.J., Sept. 22, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corporation (Nasdaq:IART) announced today an in-kind donation of over $700,000 worth of neurosurgical medical devices to the Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) -- Armenia Medical Partnership Program, to be used to provide medical assistance in Armenia. The United Armenian Fund will transport the donated equipment.
Following the devastation of the 1988 earthquake and the war and political upheaval of the 1990's, BUSM partnered with the Armenian National Institute of Health, the Yerevan State Medical University, and the Grigor Lusavorich Medical Center, located in Yerevan, the capital city of Armenia, to train physicians, medical students and other health care professionals. Focused on providing assistance with education and patient care, these programs include: physician and student exchange programs between the two countries; training programs for physicians, medical students and nurses in Armenia; patient care programs, including those targeting certain medical conditions prevalent in Armenia; and access to the latest research results through on-line library services.
Regarding Integra's generous gift of equipment to the Partnership, Dr. Karen Antman, Dean of BUSM and Provost of Boston University's Medical Campus, said, "We are so pleased to join with the Integra LifeSciences Corporation and the United Armenian Fund in this essential work. Access in Armenia to these high quality medical instruments will facilitate physicians' delivery of the best possible medical care to patients and provide opportunities for medical students to learn the latest techniques."
Boston University School of Medicine is a major research institution, providing an exceptional environment for students interested in basic science, clinical investigation, or public health services oriented research. BUSM has 660 medical students, and a similar number of graduate students in the medical school actively engaged in the study of medicine and the biomedical sciences. Located in the historic South End of Boston, BUSM shares a campus with Boston University's Schools of Public Health and the Goldman School of Dental Medicine, Boston Medical Center, and the Solomon Carter Fuller Mental Health Center.
The United Armenian Fund was formed in November 1989 as a tax-exempt nonprofit organization whose purpose is to bring short term humanitarian and longer term rehabilitation aid to Armenia. In the past nineteen years, the UAF has sent over $526 million of humanitarian supplies to Armenia on 147 airlifts and 1,575 sea containers. The UAF is a coalition of the flowing seven leading Armenian-American charitable and religious organizations: Armenian Assembly of America, Armenian Relief Society, Diocese of the Armenian Church of America, the Lincy Foundation, and the Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America.
Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corporation, a world leader in regenerative medicine, is dedicated to improving the quality of life for patients through the development, manufacturing, and marketing of cost-effective surgical implants and medical instruments. The company's products are used to treat millions of patients every year, primarily in neurosurgery, extremity reconstruction, orthopedics and general surgery. Integra's headquarters are in Plainsboro, New Jersey, and it has research and manufacturing facilities throughout the world. www.Integra-LS.com.
IART-G