For years medical device makers have largely avoided one of the technology world’s biggest headaches: patent “troll” litigation, but that’s about to change. What medtech needs to do to fight the trolls.

With recent changes to US patent laws, a landmark US Supreme Court decision, and the emergence of so-called “patent trolls” in the medical device community, it seems everyone is talking patents. Medical device patents and litigation are “booming,” according to industry experts, and medtech companies need to pay close attention.

The dealmaking column is a survey of recent transactions, including strategic alliances, mergers & acquisitions, and financings, in the life sciences industries. Deals are listed by the following industry sectors: in vitro diagnostics, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and research/analytical instrumentation and reagents. All transactions are excerpted from Elsevier's Strategic Transactions database, providing comprehensive transaction coverage from 1991 to the present.

The dealmaking column is a survey of recent transactions, including strategic alliances, mergers & acquisitions, and financings, in the life sciences industries. Deals are listed by the following industry sectors: in vitro diagnostics, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and research/analytical instrumentation and reagents. All transactions are excerpted from Elsevier's Strategic Transactions.