SurgiCount Medical, Inc., the wholly-owned operating subsidiary of Patient Safety Technologies, Inc. has expanded the use of its SurgiCount Safety-Sponge System to 135 institutions. This expanded user base brings the total hospitals currently using the Safety-Sponge System and those covered by signed agreements and expected implementations to over 255.

Over 57 new facilities have been successfully implemented since the end of the third quarter of 2011, representing approximately 72 per cent growth in SurgiCount's installed base of users during that time. Additionally, the Company has signed agreements with additional stand-alone hospitals and hospital systems representing an additional 120 facilities, the majority of which are currently scheduled to implement in the first half of 2012.

Included in the additional facilities with signed agreements and expected implementation dates is an additional 2011-2012 US News and World Report Best Hospital Honor Roll recipient, raising to seven the total number of 2011-2012 US News and World Report Best Hospital Honor Roll recipients using the SurgiCount Safety-Sponge System.

Additionally, the Company announced that use of the SurgiCount Safety-Sponge System recently surpassed an estimated 75 million Safety-Sponges successfully used in more than 3.6 million procedures.

“We are proud to partner with our ever expanding list of customers in an effort to offer their patients the highest standards of care, afford their surgical staff the best protection available and reduce their preventable costs. With more known user hospitals, more Best Hospitals Honor Roll recipients and more successful procedures than all competitive solutions combined, we believe the SurgiCount Safety-Sponge System continues to further establish itself as the clear market leader in retained sponge prevention,” stated Brian E. Stewart, president and CEO of Patient Safety Technologies, Inc.

Patient Safety Technologies, Inc., through its wholly-owned operating subsidiary SurgiCount Medical, Inc., provides the Safety-Sponge System, a solution clinically proven to improve patient safety and reduce healthcare costs by helping eliminate one of the most common errors in surgery, retained surgical sponges.