KCI PATENT CASE NOW IN JURY'S HANDS

After six weeks of testimony, a jury will now decide the merits of Kinetic Concepts Inc.'s patent infringement lawsuit against competitor BlueSky Medical Corp. and Swiss company Madela AG. Nearly 120 people packed into a standing-room-only courtroom in San Antonio on Monday to hear final arguments in a case that is being watched closely by medical companies and Wall Street. At stake is the long-term financial health of San Antonio-based KCI, a wound-care device company. If the jury determines that KCI's patent protections are invalid, it will leave the field wide open to other companies to compete with KCI in the wound-care market with similar methods or products. My San Antonio (http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/stories/MYSA071806.1E.KCIClosing.cc45d1.html)