Surgical incision management could generate savings of more than 60 million Euros in Germany alone

SAN ANTONIO. - Wednesday, June 4th 2014 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE) Kinetic Concepts, Inc. announced today that a new study, published in the International Wound Journal, showed the Prevena™ Incision Management System used over closed incisions for the first six to seven days reported a significantly lower infection rate than conventional dressings in patients undergoing cardiac surgery via median sternotomy. Post-sternotomy wound infection is a serious, potentially fatal complication of cardiac surgery which often requires additional surgery, and is associated with significantly increased health care costs.

This study compared the infection rates of 3,745 patients who had received median sternotomy for cardiac surgery; 237 patients received surgical incision management via the Prevena™ System (-125mmHg) for six to seven days, and the remaining 3,508 were given conventional sterile wound tape dressings. After 30 days, only three (1.3%) of the 237 patients in the Prevena™ Therapy group had wound infections, while 119 (3.4%) of the 3,508 patients in the conventional dressing group had infections at the incision site (p<0.05; odds ratio 2.74).

“This study showed that use of the Prevena™ System led to a statistically significant reduction in infection rates of all patients following median sternotomy,” said Prof. Onnen Grauhan, Senior Physician, Deutsches Herzzentrum Berlin, Germany. “In my practice, utilizing surgical incision management is an effective therapy that reduces the likelihood of postoperative wound infection. This therapy provides a potential savings of 60 million to 90 million Euros per year in Germany.”

The Deutsches Herzzentrum Berlin is an internationally renowned high-performance hospital for the treatment of cardiovascular and thoracic diseases, performing over 4,500 major cardiovascular surgeries per year.

“To date, this is the largest clinical study demonstrating the effectiveness of Prevena™ Therapy,” said Ron Silverman, MD, chief medical officer, KCI. “It adds to the growing body of evidence that supports the use of Prevena™ Therapy over closed surgical incisions. This study is particularly interesting in that it looked at all patients receiving sternotomy, rather than a particular high risk subgroup as in previous studies.” (O Grauhan, et al. Prevention of post-sternotomy wound infections in obese patients by negative pressure wound therapy. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2012 October 27.)

The Prevena™ Incision Management System is intended to manage closed surgical incisions. Prevena™ Therapy is an example of continuing efforts by KCI to change the practice of medicine with solutions that can help speed healing, reduce complications and improve the lives of patients.

“Prevena™ Therapy is truly transforming how surgical incisions are managed, thereby expanding our surgical solution platform,” said Joe Woody, president & CEO, KCI. “This highlights the opportunity to expand our full suite of negative pressure wound therapy products into different or adjacent procedures that serve as a key area for growth, providing substantial clinical and economic benefit to our customers and patients.”

About KCI

Kinetic Concepts, Inc. (KCI) is a leading global medical technology company devoted to understanding, developing and commercializing innovative, high-technology transformational healing solutions for customers and patients in more than 75 countries around the world. KCI, along with LifeCell Corporation and Systagenix Wound Management, form one globally diversified wound care, biologics and regenerative medicine company, committed to advancing the science of medicine to reduce complications, speed healing and improve patient lives. Headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, the company is a leader in the medical technology industry with the most comprehensive offering of best-in-class surgical and chronic wound therapies. Additional information about KCI and its products is available at www.KCI1.com.

Contacts

KCI Corporate Communications

Mike Barger, +1-210-255-6824

mike.barger@kci1.com

KCI Investor Relations

Nathan Speicher, +1-210-255-6027

nathan.speicher@kci1.com

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