Electromedicine heritage
| C. Erbe GmbH | |
|---|---|
| legal form | GmbH |
| founding | 1851 |
| Seat | Tubingen , Germany |
| management |
|
| Number of employees | 963 |
| sales | EUR 258.60 million |
| Branch | Medical technology |
| Website | www.erbe-med.com |
| As of December 31, 2018 | |
Erbe Elektromedizin GmbH , headquartered in Tübingen, develops, produces and sells surgical products for clinics and specialist practices . The product range includes systems (devices and instruments) for high frequency surgery , vessel sealing, argon plasma coagulation, water jet surgery and cryo (cold) surgery. All central departments are represented at the headquarters in Tübingen. Erbe has a network of sales and service employees in Germany. Internationally, Erbe has subsidiaries in Belgium, China, France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, India, Italy, Austria, Poland, Russia, Switzerland and the USA. Representative offices in Lebanon, Singapore and Serbia look after cross-border regions. The specialist trade covers a further 140 countries.
history
Erbe Elektromedizin GmbH was founded in Tübingen in 1851 by Christian Heinrich Erbe. The founder and his descendants developed instruments and accessories for medical technology as well as optical devices in collaboration with scientists and physicians from the University of Tübingen .
Erbe is one of the co-founders of electrosurgery and in 1923 brought the first high-frequency surgical device onto the market that was used exclusively for surgery. In 1985 the first automatically regulated HF surgical device came out. An automatically regulated high-frequency cutting process, which was developed by Erbe, allows doctors to make optimal cuts and a controlled course of hemostasis with minimal tissue destruction.
In 2015, the company is managed by the fifth generation of family members and has around 900 employees worldwide, twelve subsidiaries and two representative offices on almost every continent.
The previous owners were:
- Christian Heinrich Erbe (1851–1882)
- Christian Gottfried Erbe (1882–1907)
- Pauline Erbe (1907–1923)
- Christian Otto Erbe (1923–1962)
- Helmut Erbe (1962-2003)
- Christian Otto Erbe, Reiner Thede (sole managing director since 2003)
Application of the products
The systems are primarily used in visceral or general surgery, gynecology, urology, gastroenterology (endoscopy) and pneumology in the form of complete workstations. The basic module is an electrosurgical unit that is tailored to the respective discipline in terms of software, hardware and special instruments. Additional sub-systems such as smoke evacuation , endoscopy irrigation pump or nerve testing device can be added to the workstation.
- High-frequency electrosurgery: with high-frequency alternating current, the surgeon can cut, coagulate (hemostasis), devitalize (e.g. destroy tumor tissue) and seal vessels. HF surgery is used in almost every surgical procedure, an HF incision is made without pressure and coagulates (hemostasis) the interfaces at the same time
- Vessel sealing through thermofusion: a special application form of HF surgery to securely close vessels and tissue structures without sutures or ligatures Example: the vessels and structures of the uterus are securely sealed before being separated.
- Argon plasma coagulation (APC): a special form of HF surgery in which HF current is transmitted without contact via ionized argon gas (plasma). Example: in a gastrointestinal or colonoscopy, bleeding can be stopped immediately and minor tissue changes devitalized.
- Cryosurgery: is used to devitalize tissue by cold (e.g. to destroy tumor tissue) or to extract it by freezing it. Example: in a bronchoscopy (lung specimen), tumors or tissue samples (e.g. for a biopsy) can be extracted after freezing.
- Water jet or hydrosurgery: selective procedure that cuts through tissue with a water jet and protects vessels and nerve structures. Example: in liver surgery, blood vessels are flushed free and can be supplied according to their size, with significantly reduced blood loss compared to other procedures.
Instruments and accessories
Erbe also offers the right accessories for the devices, such as applicators or instruments. The water jet applicators are just as much a part of the product range as mono- and bipolar electrodes with which incisions can be made in the context of HF surgery. Erbe has developed the BiClamp lap especially for laparoscopic surgery .
Applications
Products from Erbe Elektromedizin GmbH are used in the following areas of application:
- General surgery, e.g. B. in a thyroidectomy or liver resection
- Dermatology / phlebology , e.g. B. vein stripping
- Gastroenterology, e.g. B. in a papillotomy , polypectomy or ESD (endoscopic submucosa dissection)
- Gynecology, e.g. B. a vaginal hysterectomy
- Ophthalmology , e.g. B. in a surgical removal of a chalazion or in eyelid surgery
- Pulmonology , e.g. B. bronchoscopy , cryoprobe biopsy or cryo-recanalization
- Urology, e.g. B. in a transurethal resection of the prostate, partial nephrectomy or a prostatectomy .
literature
- Liane von Droste: Zeitbilder - the heritage chronicle. Medical technology from Tübingen 1851 - 2015 . Edition Steinlach, Glienicke, 2015, ISBN 978-3-9815658-1-2 .
- Liane von Droste: Images in Time - the Erbe Chronicle. Medical Technology from Tübingen 1851 - 2015 . Ed. Steinlach, Glienicke, 2015, ISBN 978-3-9815658-2-9 .
Movie
- Surgery with fire and ice - The Erbe company and electromedicine. Documentary, Germany, 2015, 29:38 min., Script and director: Lothar Zimmermann, production: SWR , series: made in Südwest , first broadcast: August 5, 2015 on SWR, synopsis by ARD , online video .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Consolidated Financial Statements as of December 31, 2018 in the electronic Federal Gazette
- ↑ history. In: erbe-med.com
- ↑ IES 2: Smoke evacuation system, 100-120 V , accessed on January 11, 2016.
- ↑ EIP 2 irrigation pump. In: erbe-med.com , accessed on January 11, 2016.
- ↑ NT 2 VIO nerve stimulator. In: erbe-med.com , accessed on January 11, 2016.
- ^ High frequency electrosurgery
- ↑ Thermofusion
- ↑ APC 2 (for VIO) argon plasma coagulation device. In: erbe-med.com , accessed on January 11, 2016.
- ↑ Cryosurgery
- ↑ Hydrosurgery