(CN)- The Federal Circuit upheld the validity of Kinetic Concepts' patents for a method of using suction to treat slow-healing wounds, but ruled that a competitor did not infringe on those patents.
Kinetic accused BlueSky Medical of patent infringement, false advertising, unfair competition and conspiracy. BlueSky counterclaimed that Kinetic's patents are invalid and unenforceable.
In 2006, a federal jury in San Antonio ruled that Kinetic holds valid patents, but that BlueSky didn't violate those patents.
Neither side was satisfied with the verdict, as both parties requested judgments as a matter of law and a new trial. The district court denied these requests, so the parties appealed to the Federal Circuit.
The parties disagreed over the definition of "treating a wound." Kinetic said the term applied to the treatment of tissue damage, while BlueSky said it means "giving medical care to an injury."
"We agree with Kinetic that 'wound,' as used in the asserted patents, does not cover the fistula (holes in organs) and pus pockets described in (prior) references," Judge Prost ruled.
The federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., declined to overturn the 2006 ruling. Though Kinetic lost its appeal, its shares rose after the court upheld Kinetic's patents.
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