NICE recommends the use of Exhaled Nitric Oxide (FeNO) testing to help diagnose and manage asthma.


Solna (Sweden) – Aerocrine AB (OMX Nordic Exchange: AERO) today announced that
NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) has published
guidelines (http://www.nice.org.uk/newsroom/news/SimpleTestToHelpDiagnoseAndMana
g 
eAsthma.jsp) recommending the use of Aerocrine’s NIOX MINO® and NIOX VERO® to
help guide the diagnosis and management of asthma in both adults and children.
NICE develops evidence-based guidelines that help the National Health Services,
local authorities and the wider medical community deliver high-quality
healthcare to the British public. The new guidelines recommend that FeNO tests
be used to assist with the diagnosis and management of asthma caused by allergic
airway inflammation in adults and children who, after initial clinical
examination, are considered to have an intermediate probability of having asthma
and when FeNO testing is intended to be done in combination with other
diagnostic options.

Aerocrine’s NIOX MINO and NIOX VERO measure FeNO levels. Healthcare
professionals use FeNO testing to identify allergic airway inflammation in
patients with suspected asthma, to help predict patient response to
corticosteroid therapy and to help assess patient adherence to the prescribed
therapy. NIOX MINO and NIOX VERO produce objective, reliable and accurate
results and are built on the recommendations from the American Thoracic Society
(ATS) and the European Respiratory Society (ERS). FeNO measurement is also
recommended by NICE as an option to support asthma management in people who are
symptomatic despite using inhaled corticosteroids.

Professor Carole Longson, NICE Health Technology Evaluation Centre Director,
said: “Diagnosing asthma is often a very complicated and lengthy process. Using
these devices can provide additional information for clinicians about those
people who, following clinical examination, are considered to have an
intermediate probability of having asthma.

Professor Longson added: “In people already diagnosed with asthma, measuring
nitric oxide levels to guide their asthma management is likely to reduce asthma
attacks. The measurements can reveal whether they are taking their medication as
prescribed.”

The NICE report points out that poorly controlled asthma can have a serious
impact on the quality of life of the patient and their family and that the use
of FeNO testing in conjunction with existing tests is more cost-effective than
when the existing tests are used alone.

NICE’s Diagnostics Advisory Committee, which is made up of leading clinicians
and academics, made its recommendations after hearing from specialists that high
FeNO levels in people with symptoms suggestive of asthma, such as coughing or
wheezing, may indicate that the patient has eosinophilic asthma, which may be
treated with inhaled corticosteroids.

“The Committee heard from a patient expert that an accurate diagnosis of asthma
can sometimes take many years, resulting in less than optimal treatment, which
can have a direct impact on health. It was also stated that FeNO-guided
management could result in patients better understanding their own condition and
disease progression, which could reduce hospitalisations and improve patient
experience.”

After hearing that approximately 30% of people do not take their medications as
prescribed, the NICE committee concluded that: “FeNO testing could potentially
enable patients and doctors to improve treatment concordance in patients who are
on medications for asthma.”

Aerocrine’s UK Managing Director David Plotts welcomed the latest NICE
guidelines. “Numerous studies across the world have concluded that FeNO can be
used to support more effective diagnosis and management of asthma,” he said.
“Our NIOX MINO® and NIOX VERO® devices are already in use by many GPs, nurses
and specialist clinicians in both primary and secondary care sites across the
UK. “We now look forward to more UK patients being able to gain access to this
cutting-edge method of testing airway inflammation and the benefits it can
provide.”

Ian Pavord, Professor of Respiratory Medicine at the University of Oxford,
described the new recommendations as a “hugely significant step forward for
patients with asthma or those who are suspected of having asthma.”

Professor Pavord added that “using FeNO gives GPs, nurses and specialist
respiratory teams an important tool to identify inflammation that is likely to
respond to inhaled steroids. This is often the key clinical question.”

Aerocrine’s CEO Scott Myers confirmed how important these recommendations are
both to the UK and other key markets “my belief is that this will help
accelerate the adoption of this technology throughout the UK in second half of
2014 and early 2015 and will provide the incentive for Clinical Commissioning
Groups to seriously consider supporting the FeNO test within their GP practices.
These factors should contribute to the positive growth of the UK market. These
recommendations are viewed by many countries who value the process and
credibility that NICE provides and is another step in ensuring that FeNO is
regarded as an integral part of standard asthma care.”

NICE has also developed tools including an implementation pack to support the
uptake and adoption of the technology across the NHS. The implementation pack,
which can be found at http://guidance.nice.org.uk/DG12/AdoptionSupport includes
case studies from hospitals and GP surgeries that currently use NIOX MINO and
NIOX VERO and will contain useful information and practical advice on putting
this guidance into practice.

The full NICE guidance can be found at:
http://guidance.nice.org.uk/DG12/Guidance/pdf/English

For more information, contact:

Scott Myers, Chief Executive Officer, Aerocrine AB, Phone: +46 768 788 379, +970
368 0336

David Plotts, Vice President, UK Managing Director and EU/RoW Sales.   +44 (0)
7891 433239

Dr. Kathy Rickard, Chief Medical Officer, Aerocrine AB +919 749 6708

About Aerocrine

Aerocrine AB is a medical technology company focused on the improved management
and care of patients with inflammatory airway diseases. As the pioneer and
leader in technology to monitor and manage airway inflammation, Aerocrine
markets NIOX MINO® and NIOX VERO® (EU) Both products enable fast and reliable
management of airway inflammation and may therefore play a critical role in more
effective diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of patients with inflammatory
airway diseases such as asthma. Aerocrine is based in Sweden with subsidiaries
in the U.S., Germany and the U.K. Aerocrine shares were listed on the Stockholm
Stock Exchange in 2007.

Aerocrine may be required to disclose the information provided herein pursuant
to the Securities Markets Act and/or the Financial Instruments Trading Act. The
information was submitted for publication at 1:00 PM on 04/02/2014

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