New Implantable Antibiotic Helps Canadian Hospitals Save Lives And Money By Preventing Surgical Infections

Published Thursday, January 15 2009

TORONTO – Surgical site infections (SSIs) are devastating to patient safety and hospital budgets. SSIs double patients’ risk of dying and cost the Canadian healthcare system over $200 million, and 400,000 bed days annually. Now, a new antibiotic "sponge" is available in Canada which reduces SSIs 50 to 85 percent. The sponge is implanted during surgery and delivers high-doses of antibiotic directly to the site of infection risk.

Approximately 50,000 Canadians suffer a surgical site infection after surgery. Though overshadowed in media by reports of MRSA and C. difficile, SSIs are in fact the second most common adverse event in hospitalized patients, accounting for 14 to 16 percent of all hospital-acquired infections.

Surgical site infections increase mortality, hospital readmission rate, length of stay, and hospital costs. Despite this significant burden on patients, families and hospitals, 40 to 60 percent of these infections are considered preventable if reasonable precautions are taken.

Today’s best-practices for SSI prevention include IV antibiotics, appropriate hair removal, maintenance of blood sugar levels and body temperature. However even with these measures, patients who are overweight, have diabetes, are elderly, have weakened immune systems, or are undergoing lengthy or "dirty" surgical procedures are at high-risk for developing a life-threatening SSI.

For this group of patients, Collatamp G, a collagen sponge containing high doses of the proven antibiotic gentamicin, provides an important extra level of protection. Used with the best practices listed above, Collatamp G delivers a dramatic, 50 to 85 percent reduction in SSI risk, and significant cost savings to Canadian hospitals.

About Collatamp G

Collatamp G is inserted into the surgical wound prior to closure and, over the following days, releases antibiotic directly where it is needed, at doses high enough to kill even resistant bacteria. This ability to deliver local antibiotics is a new approach for surgeons and overcomes the major problem with IV antibiotics; the inability, because of toxicity concerns and side effects, to achieve high-enough doses to be effective. Further, in patients who are elderly or have diabetes, poor circulation often hinders the ability of the circulating IV antibiotic to get to the target site where it is actually needed.

Collatamp G avoids this "shotgun" IV approach by delivering therapy in a highly targeted fashion directly to the site where it is needed, when it is needed.

Introduced to Canadian hospitals in mid-2008 by Mississauga-based Theramed Corporation, Collatamp G is now being used in general surgery, orthopaedic surgery, vascular and plastic surgery procedures. Outside of Canada, Collatamp G has been used worldwide in over 2 million patients over 20 years with no reported adverse events. Collatamp G received Health Canada approval in 2007, and has been granted Fast Track status by the United States' FDA.

For further information, please contact:

Stephen McElroy
Chief Commercial Officer
Theramed Corporation
800-305-4441
smcelroy@theramed.com
www.collatampg.ca/journalists