TWC News Update

Mobile Wound Care App Garners Sponsorship

  WellDyne Health, a health solutions provider and distributor based in Lakeland, FL, has announced an exclusive sponsorship for WoundSmart™, a wound care documentation application for the iPhone and iPad.   A fully functional documentation suite that can be used to document a wound’s progress on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis while maintaining a secure wound care history, WoundSmart also allows providers to maintain patients’ demographic information, lab results, cultures, and radiographic history in one place, officials said. The app also maintains a record of wound progress, including size and depth, as well as all wound and peri-wound characteristics, grade, drainage, wound procedures, interventions, and signs of infection, in addition to pictorial documentation.    “We are excited to sponsor such an innovative product,” said Doug Taylor, executive vice president of sales and marketing with WellDyne. “It will dramatically help wound care professionals easily and effectively document the life of a wound, providing patients with the highest quality of care while delivering real-life wound solutions.”   WellDyne Health also distributes CellerateRX®, a patented advanced wound care collagen product that is exclusively licensed by Wound Care Innovations LLC, Fort Lauderdale, FL, a wholly owned subsidiary of Wound Management Technologies Inc., Fort Worth, TX, an emerging commercial stage company with primary products in the advanced wound care market.

Halifax Health Expands Wound Care Services

  Healthcare providers at Halifax Health Medical Center, Daytona Beach, FL, recently began offering hyperbaric oxygen therapy, further expanding on wound care within the facility and region.   According to the Daytona Beach News Journal, the hospital invested $500,000 to install two hyperbaric chambers to treat patients with chronic, nonhealing wounds. The two chambers can treat up to eight patients per day. Hospital officials will hold a community event to showcase the chambers Nov. 1.

Celleration Launches Mist Applicator for Wounds

  A new product by Celleration Inc., Eden Prairie, MN, provides wound care clinicians increased flexibility to access the most difficult-to-reach wounds while allowing larger wounds to be treated more easily, according to officials.   The MIST® 360 Applicator offers low-frequency ultrasound delivered without contact through a saline mist. Unlike conventional wound treatments that are limited to treating the surface, MIST Therapy delivers sound waves, which stimulate cells to shorten the healing process, into and below the wound bed to reduce barriers to healing, like bacteria and sustained inflammation, officials said. The mist also makes it easier for healthcare providers to treat wounds that are larger and/or in difficult to access areas of the body. “We are very pleased to be able to provide another treatment solution for these difficult-to-treat wounds and to demonstrate Celleration’s commitment to meeting our customers’ needs through bringing innovation to the wound care market,” said Mark Wagner, CEO. For more information, visit to www.celleration.com.

AAWC Announces 2012 Sponsors

  Officials with the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care (AAWC) have announced their corporate sponsors for 2012. This year’s group includes 3M Skin and Wound Care, St. Paul, MN; Advanced Tissue, Little Rock, AR; KCI Medical, San Antonio, TX; Convatec, Skillman, NJ; Healthpoint Biotherapeutics, Fort Worth, TX; Hill-Rom, Batesville, IN; Molnlycke Health Care US LLC, Norcross, GA; Shire Regenerative Medicine, Chesterbrook, PA; and Smith & Nephew, Andover, MA. Representatives from these supportive corporations, along with AAWC board members, constitute the AAWC’s corporate advisory panel (CAP), which works to support the wound care industry on issues with payers and government. Participation in the CAP provides a forum for common issues and concerns to be addressed, validated, and submitted to payers and government agencies, according to AAWC. Participating AAWC board members on the CAP include: Robert J. Snyder, DPM, CWS, president; Terry Treadwell, MD, FACS, past-president; Vickie Driver, MS, DPM, FACFAS, president-elect; Peggy Dotson, RN, BS, secretary and chair of the regulatory affairs committee; Barbara Bates-Jensen, PhD, RN, CWOCN, research board member; and Janice Young, RN, BSN, MPH, WOCN, industry board member. The panel meets regularly, including at such meetings as the Symposium on Advanced Wound Care in the spring and fall, to discuss mutual concerns and areas of interest. The AAWC’s 2013 sponsorship campaign is underway. Contact AAWC by calling 800-237-7285, ext. 113 or by visiting https://aawconline.org.

Spiracur Awarded NHS Agreement, SNaP Nets Drug Tariff Approval

  Spiracur Inc., Sunnyvale, CA, has announced its inclusion on the NHS Supply Chain’s framework agreement for the provision of advanced wound care, including for its suite of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) solutions. Spiracur officials have also announced the company has been granted reimbursement status for its SNaP Wound Care System and is listed on the United Kingdom’s drug tariff effective Oct. 1.   The framework agreement provides NHS trusts, government departments, and private sector entities that are active in the UK healthcare sector with access to a pre-selected list of approved suppliers in order to expedite the procurement process and potentially reduce costs. The SNaP system is a mechanically powered, portable NPWT system encompassing proprietary spring technology that reduces air density within an enclosure. The springs stabilize in the presence of exudate so that a constant controlled amount of negative pressure is delivered to the wound bed. Recently, a prospective study to evaluate outcomes for the treatment of lower extremity diabetic, venous, and mixed etiology leg wounds using SNaP commenced at Cardiff University School of Medicine in Wales. For more information, visit https://spiracur.com.

Once-Per-Week Diabetes Drug Shows Promise in Clinical Study

  A new drug for treatment of type 2 diabetes that would be administered once per week has shown effectiveness in lowering blood sugar levels during a mid-stage clinical trial, according to a report by Reuters.   The pill, known as MK-3102, which is being developed by Merck & Co., Whitehouse Station, NJ, is from the same class of medicines as Merck’s successful daily diabetes drug Januvia, known as DPP-4 inhibitors.   The 685-patient study reportedly tested MK-3102 at five doses ranging from 0.25 mg-25 mg against a placebo, with the primary goal being reduction in A1c. After 12 weeks of treatment with the Merck drug, A1c was reduced 0.71 percent at 25 mg, 0.67 percent at 10 mg, 0.49 percent at 3 mg, 0.5 percent at 1 mg, and 0.28 percent for the lowest dose of 0.25 mg. The reductions compared with placebo for all doses were said to be statistically significant, according to Merck officials, who recently presented data at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) meeting in Berlin. The 0.71 reduction seen with the 25 mg dose is similar to the glucose reduction attained by Januvia (sitagliptin).   Based on the Phase II results, Merck is reportedly launching larger Phase III trials and has chosen to advance only the 25 mg dose to test MK-3102 against, and in combination with, a variety of diabetes treatments.    “We do anticipate the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of this will be comparable to sitagliptin,” Nancy Thornberry, Merck’s head of diabetes and endocrinology, told Reuters.   As with all new diabetes treatments since Avandia was linked to serious heart risks, MK-3102 will have to demonstrate heart safety in its Phase III trials, according to the report.