BIOGUARD™ Wound Dressings with NIMBUS®
Technology May Provide Safeguards
Against Influenza Viruses
Independent Lab Finds Greater than 99.9% Inactivation Rate for H1N1 Virus
after 24 Hours Exposure to Dressings with NIMBUS Technology
Nearly 10,000 U.S Deaths Caused by Swine Flu
Gainesville, Florida – December 15, 2009 – Quick-Med Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB:QMDT) announced today that its licensee, Derma Sciences, Inc. (OTCBB: DSCI), has reported that an independent laboratory has found that BIOGUARD™ barrier gauze dressings with Quick-Med’s novel NIMBUS antimicrobial technology exhibit high antiviral efficacy against the H1N1 virus. This new information increases the applicability of the dressings, which have already been shown to have high efficacy against virulent bacteria such as MRSA.
BCS Laboratories Inc. of Gainesville, Florida exposed two varieties of BIOGUARD
dressings to quantities of the Influenza A (H1N1; ATCC VR-1469) virus for a period of
24 hours. At the end of this interval, quantities of the virus were found to be reduced in
both dressing types by an average percentage of 99.93%.
Although human-to-human transmission of H1N1 virus can occur through coughing or
sneezing by people infected with the influenza virus, or by touching something with flu
viruses on it and then touching one's mouth or nose, the potential also exists of
transmission via cross-contamination during wound dressing changes. This is especially
true if the dressing is soaked with wound fluid, which can increase the time the virus
survives in the dressing. When an infected wound's dressing is changed, pathogens within
the dressing are potentially made airborne, increasing the risk of infection to those in the
immediate vicinity. Wound care patients also run the risk of being infected by a virus as
their dressings are changed. The H1N1 virus can be easily transmitted from the wound
dressings to the hands of healthcare workers, while small airborne droplets of wound
fluid with H1N1 can be inhaled by doctors, nurses or patients. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported last week that swine flu
has caused nearly 10,000 deaths in the United States as of mid-November, part of an
outbreak that has already infected about 50 million Americans.
About BIOGUARD Wound Dressings
BIOGUARD dressings, which were introduced in June by Derma Sciences, are the first
wound care products to feature Quick-Med’s novel, FDA-cleared NIMBUS technology.
The dressings serve as a barrier to infection, kill germs absorbed into the dressing, and do
not interfere with tissue healing. The NIMBUS active agent maintains effectiveness even
in the presence of large amounts of proteinaceous exudates.
NIMBUS is unique in that it is the only non-leaching antimicrobial wound dressing,
which the Company believes is an important distinction; other antimicrobial dressings
rely on the release of chemicals to the wound bed that can impede the wound healing
process. By its design, NIMBUS poses minimal risk of bacteria developing resistance.
Quick-Med’s NIMBUS barrier gauze wound dressing received market clearance in
February from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration via FDA’s De Novo review
process, a special clearance program for low-risk medical devices that are found to be
“not substantially equivalent” to any predicate device. Derma Sciences reported first
commercial sales in late June. NIMBUS technology is protected by nine Quick-Med U.S.
patents and patents pending and 24 foreign counterparts.
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