LITTLE ROCK, Ark., Dec. 8, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Cytomedix, Inc. (OTCBB:CYME) today announced the appointment of Charles R. Baxter, M.D. to the position of chief medical advisor and chairman of its newly established medical advisory board.
"The appointment of Dr. Baxter, a world-renowned expert in the field of chronic wounds and burns, represents an important step in the company's evolution and its corporate mission to offer patients an innovative and highly effective therapy for a variety of chronic wounds. We are gratified by Dr. Baxter's willingness to serve in this capacity and look forward to benefiting from his expertise and guidance," said Mark Cline, president of Cytomedix.
Commenting on his appointment, Dr. Baxter said, "I am delighted to assume this role with Cytomedix. The AutoloGel(tm) System is the most effective therapy for the treatment of chronic wounds I have ever had the pleasure of using. I believe that, together, we can provide a new level of care to patients suffering from these afflictions."
Dr. Baxter is internationally recognized wound care expert and a leader in creating innovative care and treatment of burns, non-healing wounds, and skin injuries. He has been a pioneer in developing fluid replacement regimes, skin grafting medical procedures utilizing pigskin and human skin on human wounds -- establishing one of the first human skin banks in the United States at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, where he conducts multi-disciplinary research both in burn and wound care.
He is a highly respected educator of physicians, fellows, nurses, and paramedical personnel. He has served as professor of surgery at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School since 1971. His research and advancements in clinical care have improved patient outcomes in multiple medical fields -- including burns, wound care and trauma.
Among his extensive list of honors, Dr. Baxter has served on the President's Task Force on Organ and Tissue Transplants and the Governor's Advisory Committee to Facilitate Organ Transplants. He also has been awarded the Frank H. Kidd Professorship of Surgery at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, the American Burn Association's Harvey Stewart Allen Award for distinguished service, and the American Association of Tissue Bank's Distinguished Service Award.
He has been a National Institute of Health Research Fellow, a research investigator at Brooke Army Hospital, and a member of the General Medical Research Program's Project Committee of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences. Dr. Baxter also has served as chairman of the surgical advisory board and Burns and Research Center at the Shriner's Hospitals for Crippled Children, and as a member of the surgical study section, National Institutes of Health.
He received a B.A. degree from the University of Texas at Austin as a Phi Beta Kappa scholar, and an M.D. degree from Southwestern Medical School. His internship and residencies in both internal medicine and surgery were at Parkland Memorial Hospital, Dallas. He was director of the hospital's Burn Center since 1961, and recently retired from his position as director of the Burn Research Center and Clinical Tissue Transplant Center.
Dr. Baxter is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons, American Association for the Surgery of Trauma, American Surgical Association, and the Society of University Surgeons. In addition, he is a member of the International Society of Burn Injuries and numerous other organizations. He was recently appointed to the distinguished position as Professor Emeritus at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School.
Dr. Baxter has published articles in over 135 scientific publications, 33 different book publications, 206 abstracts and over 56 lectureships in the field. Awards of excellence include: Harvey Steward Allen Distinguished Service Award, Kidd Chair, Whitaker International Burns Award, American Society or Trauma Curtis P. Artz Award, Golden Charity Guild Award, Dallas Historical Society Medicine Award, Distinguished Service American Association of Tissue Banks, Lyons Humanitarian Award, Wound Healing Award for Distinguished Service, Tanner-Vendrput-Boswick International Burn Award and The Parkland Hospital Heritage Award.
About Cytomedix
Cytomedix, Inc. is a biotechnology company specializing in processes and products derived from autologous platelet releasates. The current product offering is AutoloGel, an autologous platelet gel composed of multiple growth factors and fibrin matrix, which is used to treat chronic wounds. Cytomedix is working with healthcare providers to offer an advanced therapy at the point-of-care in multiple settings. For more information, visit www.cytomedix.com.
Forward Looking Statements
Statements contained in this press release not relating to historical facts are forward-looking statements that are intended to fall with the safe harbor rule for such statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The information contained in the forward-looking statements is inherently uncertain, and Cytomedix's actual results may differ materially due to a number of factors, many of which are beyond Cytomedix's ability to predict or control, including among others, governmental regulation, acceptance by the medical community and competition. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events to differ from the forward-looking statements. More information about some of these risks and uncertainties may be found in the reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission by Cytomedix, Inc.