HEALTHPOINT Enters Licensing Agreement with Collegium for 2 Late-Stage Topical Analgesics
Healthpoint (Fort Worth, Tex.) has entered into an agreement with Collegium Pharmaceutical, Inc. (Cumberland, RI) to license and sell 2 of Collegium’s late-stage patent-pending topical analgesics, an over the counter product and a prescription application.
These 2 products are intended to offer clinical advantages over currently available formulations, according to the companies.
Healthpoint researches, develops, and markets branded pharmaceuticals for surgical, tissue management, and dermatology indications. Collegium is a specialty pharmaceutical product development company. Collegium filed the patent application to cover both products.
The companies expect launch during the first half of 2005.
Healthpoint will handle the commercial launch and all subsequent marketing and sales efforts for both products. Collegium remains responsible for pre-launch activities, including coordinating manufacturing of launch quantity inventory.
Collegium develops differentiated, patent-protected products with enhanced clinical profiles, takes them through proof of concept studies, and then out-licenses the products for commercialization by a strategic marketing partner.
Visit http://www.healthpoint.com for more information.
Medline Introduces XCell Wound Dressings
Medline Industries Inc. (Mundelein, Ill.) introduces XCell cellulose dressings, the company’s first line of proven, bioengineered wound dressings.
The dressing has been used to treat a wide range of chronic and acute wounds, including venous, diabetic, pressure, and arterial ulcers, donor sites, traumatic wounds, and skin tears. Documentation from clinical trials shows the dressing provides pain relief, improves granulation tissue growth and epithelization, and protects the periwound skin from maceration.
The dressing provides a continuous balance of moisture by simultaneously hydrating dry surfaces and absorbing excess fluid from wet surfaces.
The product is cool to the touch and immediately soothes the wound area when applied. The soft, flexible construction conforms to the contours of the wound. The nonadherent surface does not disturb the new tissue growth upon removal. XCell’s ability to form a “neo-blister” provides protection to the wound bed, thus reducing pain.
The bioengineered material protects the periwound skin by absorbing potentially damaging wound exudate.
The bioengineered moisture-handling structure is able to maintain the optimum moisture balance in a wound. XCell can hydrate 1 area of a wound, while it absorbs fluid from another to achieve the optimum moisture balance throughout the healing process.
Visit http://www.medline.com for more information.
EHOB Seeks Participants for Product Trial
Severely overweight people occasionally have difficulty getting the healthcare that others often take for granted. Often, they cannot fit into standard wheelchairs, waiting-room armchairs, or magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography scan machines. X-rays frequently cannot penetrate far enough into their bodies to produce useful images, and wall-mounted toilets can snap off under their weight. The result is that the people who often need medical treatment the most refuse to seek it.
To address these concerns, EHOB (Indianapolis, Ind.) is developing a line of WAFFLE® products specifically designed for bariatric use. Its new cushion achieves the same level of care and prevention in a lower profile by incorporating a larger number of smaller, uniform holes. The diamond-shaped pattern of holes distributes the patient’s weight more evenly and eliminates the “rocking sensation” sometimes felt while seated. Material stress is also minimized using this new design. Due to the low cost, the patient can take the seat cushion to the next level of treatment, maintaining the continuum of care.
There are a limited number of bariatric seat cushions (28” x 21”) available for evaluation use. EHOB is interested in distributing the cushions to caregivers who can use them and help the company evaluate them free of charge.
For more information, email corporate@ehob.com and include your name, facility, and phone number.
CMS Offers Guidance on Skin Ulcers
Long-term care surveyors have new guidance from federal regulators to help them assess whether patients are receiving proper care to avoid or treat skin ulcers.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published long-awaited revisions to the State Operations Manual that offer detailed definitions of skin ulcers and clarify appropriate measures to avoid, assess, and treat them. The document addresses the importance of recognizing and evaluating each resident’s risk factors and areas at risk of constant pressure.
The document also addresses resident choice regarding treatment, advance directives, and pain.
Visit http://www.cms.hhs.gov/manuals/ pm_trans/R4SOM.pdf for more information.
Therapeutic Bedding Introduces Fall-Prevention Mattress Design
Therapeutic Bedding Company introduces a patent-pending mattress design to assist in fall and decubitus prevention, the Egress EZ™. This product has an “imbedded bedrail”—a firm rail completely encased inside the mattress to assist with egress, ingress, and transfer of residents. The rigid rail has a large, cupped handle on the sides of the mattress that can be easily accessed by residents for increased bed mobility.
The Egress EZ was developed by a geriatrician concerned with bed-associated injury. He saw the need to eliminate bed rails to help prevent entrapment but realized the rail assisted in other aspects of resident care. He wanted a mattress that not only helps prevent residents from falling out of bed but also assists them with getting in and out of bed.
The product is available in 2 styles. The first is a raised-edge version for residents at increased risk of falling. The second has a raised handle for when bed mobility and resident repositioning are the primary concerns. Each version includes proven pressure-reduction designs for resident comfort and decubitus prevention.
Contact Therapeutic Bedding Company at 877-847-5800 for more information on the Egress EZ.
Amerinet Awards Medline 3-Year National Agreement on Advanced Wound and Skin Care Products
Medline Industries (Mundelein, Ill.), manufacturer and distributor of healthcare supplies, recently was awarded a 3-year national agreement to deliver advanced wound and skin care products for Amerinet, a healthcare group purchasing organization.
The agreement will provide cutting-edge advanced wound care products at significant savings to Amerinet’s membership of more than 22,000 healthcare facilities in the US. The contract helps solidify Medline’s position as a leading provider of advanced wound care products to the US healthcare marketplace.
The agreement, which took effect January 1, 2005, covers a multitude of products used in the treatment of chronic wounds, including advanced wound care dressings, skin care products, transparent dressings, and silver dressings.
For more information, visit http://www.medline.com.
University Scientists Use Novel Approach to Bioengineer Artificial Skin for Burn Victims
According to the American Burn Association, each year more than 45,000 Americans suffer burns serious enough to require a hospital stay. While the traditional therapy of using skin grafts to cover burn sites has improved, a number of problems, including scarring, infection, and poor adhesion, remain.
Craig D. Woodworth, a cell biologist and associate professor at Clarkson University in Potsdam, NY, is collaborating with Anja Mueller, a polymer chemist and assistant professor of chemistry at Clarkson, on research to develop an artificial skin that would heal and function like normal skin and could be used successfully for large burns or surgical reconstruction.
They hope to bioengineer an artificial skin scaffold that will grow hair follicles and produce sweat glands to look and feel more like normal skin.
Though still in its early stages, their initial research looks promising. While Woodworth focuses on isolating a combination of cytokines that will generate skin growth and promote wound healing, Mueller is creating and testing biodegradable polymers to find 1 that will support cell growth and regeneration.
“An important question, then, is which cytokines are most effective in helping the graft heal and restore normal function,” explained Woodworth. “We are focusing on several, including EGF (epidermal growth factor) that stimulates cells to grow quickly and fill in the wound and VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) that stimulates blood vessel formation and nourishes the grafted skin.”
Recently, Woodworth has been working in the laboratory, analyzing the effects of transforming growth factor-b1 (TGF-b1) on gene expression in skin cells. This cytokine regulates production of certain cell proteins, namely collagen and connective tissue proteins, associated with wound healing.
“Our results show that TGF-b1 stimulates the formation of collagen, the natural scaffold for skin, by the fibroblasts, the underlying supporting cells,” explained Woodworth. “However, long-term expression of TGF-b1 also contributes to scarring when it is produced after the ini
Meanwhile, Mueller is testing biodegradable polymers to find the “right” polymer that will maximize the function of a bioengineered skin scaffold.
“There are 2 major issues. The first one is to develop a polymer that cells really like to attach to and grow on,” said Mueller. “For example, surface structure, charge, and degree of cross linking of the polymer may all affect cell behavior. The second challenge is to develop a polymer that can undergo slow degradation in the body and allow the transplanted cells to start making their own collagen and basement membrane that would rebuild the natural skin scaffold. The polymer scaffold might be considered then a temporary structure to provide the initial support of new skin.”
Just as important, according to Mueller, the polymer should be designed to slowly release the cytokines that stimulate the reorganization of natural skin. This is where a mild enzymatic synthesis under development by Mueller has an advantage.
Her novel approach incorporates the cytokines into the polymer scaffold before it is assembled. According to Mueller, this method allows for a steadier, more controlled release of the cytokines than the traditional method of adding the cytokines later in the process, after the scaffold is assembled. Her method of synthesis also does not require a toxic catalyst or organic solvents, so there is no danger of residual toxic compounds in the skin scaffold.
For more information, call 315-268-3873 or email rburt@clarkson.edu.
Wright Medical Group Receives Reimbursement Code for GRAFTJACKET® Ulcer Repair Matrix
Wright Medical Group Inc. (Arlington, Tenn.), a global orthopedic medical device company, announces that reimbursement “J” code has been assigned for the company’s GRAFTJACKET® Ulcer Repair Matrix, a cutting-edge treatment for chronic wounds often associated with diabetes. Under the new code, Medicare will provide reimbursement for the use of the GRAFTJACKET Matrix to treat diabetic foot ulcers and other lower-extremity wounds in the physician office setting. This new reimbursement status complements the “C” code granted in November 2004 by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), now making Wright’s GRAFTJACKET Ulcer Repair Matrix reimbursable by Medicare in hospital outpatient departments, wound care centers, and physicians’ offices.
The “J” code (J7344) established for GRAFTJACKET Matrix is defined under the Health Care Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS), which is administered by CMS. Combined with the previously issued “C” code, the “J” code makes the GRAFTJACKET technology more accessible for the approximate 480,000 diabetic foot wound sufferers who rely on Medicare coverage.
The GRAFTJACKET Matrix provides surgeons with a superior treatment option by accelerating tissue regeneration at deep levels of the wound, while protecting the wound surface with a scaffold that actually converts into functional host tissue.
Data from a pilot clinical trial show that complete wound healing occurred at 12 weeks in 85% of the patients treated with the GRAFTJACKET Matrix, compared to only 5% of the patients in the conventional treatment group.
For more information, visit http://www.wmt.com. |
