VNUS Medical Technologies, Inc. Files Patent Infringement Lawsuits Against Biolitec, Dornier and CoolTouch

SAN JOSE, Calif., July 2 CA-VNUS-lawsuits


SAN JOSE, Calif., July 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- VNUS(R) Medical
Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: VNUS), a leading provider of medical devices for
the minimally invasive treatment of venous reflux disease, announced today
that it has asserted patent infringement claims in the United States District
Court, Northern District of California, against biolitec Inc. (Biolitec),
Dornier MedTech America, Inc. (Dornier) and NewStar Lasers, Inc. d/b/a
CoolTouch, Inc. (CoolTouch).


Biolitec, CoolTouch and Dornier market endovenous laser ablation products
for use in procedures which VNUS believes infringe several of its patents.
VNUS is seeking an injunction prohibiting these companies from selling these
products, in addition to monetary damages.


The new lawsuit involves patents that VNUS previously asserted in 2005
against Diomed Holdings, Inc., AngioDynamics, Inc. and Vascular Solutions,
Inc.  VNUS entered into an agreement on June 3, 2008 with AngioDynamics and
Vascular Solutions that settled the 2005 lawsuit against those companies.  As
a part of the agreement, non-exclusive, non-sub-licensable patent licenses
were granted to AngioDynamics and Vascular Solutions and the licensees
stipulated that the VNUS patents-in-suit are valid, enforceable, and were
infringed.


Brian Farley, President and CEO, commented, "The filing of this patent
infringement suit is the next logical step in the enforcement of our
intellectual property.  We are committed to enforcement, while at the same
time we remain open to discussing the potential opportunity for the defendant
companies to obtain a limited license from VNUS."



ABOUT VNUS MEDICAL TECHNOLOGIES, INC.


Founded in 1995 and headquartered in San Jose, California, VNUS Medical
Technologies is a worldwide leader in medical devices for the minimally
invasive treatment of venous reflux disease, a progressive condition that
causes the varicose veins afflicting 25 million Americans. The pioneering
company in the field, VNUS now offers the ClosureFAST system, which consists
of a proprietary radiofrequency (RF) generator and proprietary disposable
endovenous catheters and devices to close diseased veins through the
application of temperature-controlled RF energy. VNUS devices have been used
in more than 300,000 procedures worldwide. For more information, visit
http://www.vnus.com/.



FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS


VNUS has made forward-looking statements in this press release within the
meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
Words such as "believes", or variations of such words, are intended to
identify such forward-looking statements in this press release. These
statements are based on information available to VNUS as of the date of this
press release and represent VNUS' judgment only as of the date of this press
release. Actual results may differ materially from current expectations based
on a number of factors, including, among other things, the uncertain outcome
of patent litigation and the responses by others to a settlement agreement.
Therefore, the reader is cautioned not to rely on these forward-looking
statements. VNUS expressly disclaims any intent or obligation to update these
forward-looking statements except as required by law.



SOURCE  VNUS Medical Technologies, Inc.