Top 10 Innovations in Podiatry 2022: Restrata by Acera Surgical

Dr. Abicht discloses that he is a consultant for Acera Surgical.

My name is Brad Abicht. I'm based out of Gundersen Health System in La Crosse, Wisconsin. I currently serve as the department chair for the Podiatry Department at Gundersen and continue to be involved with our residency program and different research projects here at Gundersen.

So Restrata is a wound product by Acera Surgical. And what Restrata is, is it's a fully synthetic, 100% synthetic hybrid scale fiber matrix that is also fully resorbable. It's been bioengineered with an architecture resembling human extracellular matrix. It is not a biologic. Instead, its structure supports cellular ingrowth and neovascularization. At the same time, it resists enzymatic degradation, so it actually stays around in a wound longer than some of the other products on the market. This provides a scaffold for wound healing to completely invade the product prior to breaking down via hydrolysis.

Restrata is innovative in the sense that it has created a completely new category for wound healing and for soft tissue repair, and it's the first of its synthetic kind. Its versatility is really the biggest innovative strength that I personally see, as it can be used for acute or chronic wounds all over the body. Within the podiatry arena, there are a myriad of lower extremity wounds that Restrata is indicated for. And some of these indications include venous ulcers, pressure ulcers, diabetic foot ulcers, excisions of other soft tissue defects and reconstructions, traumatic wounds, and other applications.

Other notable benefits of Restrata include easy storage and a long shelf life, and there's no need for refrigeration or freezing, so it's very user friendly that way. It's also got a user friendly application process, as there's no specific side down or side up, can be sutured or stapled in place, or even just steri-stripped. And it comes in a lot of different size options. It also comes in either meshed or non-meshed versions, depending on the clinician's preference.

I personally had the opportunity to be involved with multiple studies that analyzed the efficacy and safety of Restrata, two of which were published this past year. One of them involved the retrospective review analyzing the efficacy of Restrata in the treatment of complex lower extremity wounds of varying etiologies. And the other was a prospective study analyzing its use in diabetic foot ulcers. Both studies demonstrated high rates of wound healing. 75% complete wound healing was noted for the diabetic foot ulcers over a 12-week period, and 96% for the other lower extremity wounds in the retrospective study. I also am involved as a current investigator in an ongoing prospective randomized blinded controlled trial for venous ulcers that are analyzing Restrata versus a common alternative skin substitute.

So I think Restrata has certainly disrupted the wound care scene and created its own category of synthetics as a viable option for wound care. Looking into the future, I think this technology has high potential to be expanded further to new applications by tweaking the bioengineered structure to aid in reconstruction of other human tissue structures. As we've seen from shortages in materials and pandemic-related supply chain effects, having a sustainable synthetic option will be a beneficial entity and even necessary for healthcare providers and their patients in the future. So I think you'll see more developed with this, but right now it's certainly making an impact in lower extremity wound care.