Bournemouth, England, 7 October, 1997 -- Advanced Tissue Sciences, Inc. and its joint venture partner, Smith & Nephew plc, announced today the launch of Dermagraft in the UK market. Dermagraft is the first fully human dermal replacement available for the treatment of full thickness diabetic foot ulcers. The announcement was made today at the British Diabetic Association meeting. Dermagraft is effective in treating more diabetic foot ulcers than conventional therapies and is significantly faster. Dr. Gail Naughton, president and COO, Advanced Tissue Sciences, Inc., will be available for comment at the National Academy of Engineering's annual meeting in Washington, D.C. Dr. Naughton will be delivering a presentation on tissue engineering on Wednesday, October 8th at 2:00 p.m. (EDT), as part of a day-long symposium on bioengineering in the auditorium of the National Academy of Science building, 2100 Constitution Avenue, N.W. An estimated 800,00 diabetes patients in the United States are affected by chronic foot ulcers, which lead to approximately 55,000 limb amputations annually. Of those patients, 400,000 represent the initial target: full-thickness ulcers that are free from infection and neuropathic in origin. A Premarket Approval (PMA) application was submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in December 1996. Advanced Tissue Sciences and Smith & Nephew plan to launch Dermagraft in several other northern European countries before the end of 1997 and additional launches are planned in other global markets in 1998, subject to regulatory approval. Advanced Tissue Sciences, Inc. of LaJolla, CA, specializes in the proprietary development of human-based tissue engineering techniques. Its other currently available product, Dermagraft TC, is used as a temporary skin replacement for burn victims. Other products in the pipeline include tissue engineered cartilage for orthopedic repair, facial reconstruction and correcting facial deformities.
For More Information, Please Contact: Scott Marx Phone (415) 764-1348
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