The fifth company in my series of the top 25 stocks for the NEXT 25 years is Kyphon (NASDAQ: KYPH). Kyphon is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and was founded in 1994. The stock is hovering around $45 today and carries a market capitalization of $2.0 billion. Kyphon is the leading company in serving the medical community with several products dealing with spinal fractures and other spinal issues.

Kyphon's products are all Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved and currently sold to hospitals and physicians world-wide. Kyphon manufactures a minimally invasive surgery (MIS) line of products to treat spinal fractures. The leading cause of spinal fractures is osteoporosis. There are over 700,000 new diagnosis of osteoporosis annually in the United States alone, with a similar number for the rest of the world. The MIS techniques that Kyphon's products facilitate allow surgeons to treat the fractures by placing a "bone cement" between the vertebrae thus relieving pain and suffering almost immediately.

Kyphon's spinal products also help physicians treat cancer patients. The biopsy products allow physicians to access suspected afflicted bone samples for diagnosis and possible treatment. What had been a difficult, very invasive procedure is now performed with an incision measuring about a half to a full inch. Patient discomfort is therefore minimal.