DOYLESTOWN, Pa. and CHESHIRE, U.K., July 17, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A 47-year-old Indianapolis, Indiana woman has had her foot saved from amputation just hours before undergoing surgery, thanks to a hi-tech, new ‘wonder dressing’.
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b8ed45e8-be6a-4178-b5ff-86ac68fcc3b1
The breakthrough that made the difference for the patient was KerraCel® Ag, a thin, comfortable dressing which is the first FDA-cleared absorbent, gelling wound dressing containing Ag Oxysalts™ – a proprietary silver technology developed and commercialized by Crawford Healthcare and Exciton Technologies. The product, now available to US doctors and their patients, is expert at fighting the powerful and sometimes antibiotic resistant bacteria that diabetic ulcerations and pressure sores can harbor.
Angela Montes de Oca, a 911 police dispatcher for the Marion County Sheriff office in Indianapolis first noticed her foot ulcer towards the end of last year. After the ulcer dramatically worsened, a course of antibiotics proved ineffective and Angela was facing the prospect of amputation.
Admitted to emergency care, Angela was informed the only option was to remove part of her foot, and surgery was scheduled for the following day.
Thanks to an innovative new treatment from Crawford Healthcare, however, Angela avoided amputation and just eight weeks later is now fully recovered.
She said: “Being told I was hours away from amputation was the most terrifying moment of my life, and I say this as someone professionally trained to remain calm. My family, especially my mother, rely on me for care. I have a granddaughter and another one on the way, and I have my two dogs to look after. All I could think about was how caring for them, without my foot, would be impossible. I couldn’t face the prospect of going from being a care-giver to the one in need of care, but every single doctor had told me amputation was my only option.”
Revolutionary Technology
Bringing hope to those facing life-altering surgeries, Crawford Healthcare, a leading international advanced wound care business based in the UK, is offering this breakthrough product in the US called KerraCel® Ag.
KerraCel® Ag is the only wound dressing available that uses silver in its most active state to fight aggressive and antibiotic resistant ulcers and infections from diabetes or pressure sores.
In the most serious cases of antiobiotic-resistant diabetic ulcers, amputation has often been considered the only feasible option, although it is the most devastating. Up to 70 per cent of people die within 5 years after amputation due to diabetic foot ulceration.* With this new treatment, however, prospects are now significantly brighter for the millions of Americans that face diabetes-related complications each year.
Revolutionary Treatment
This breakthrough provides a unique healing environment that is able to disrupt and kill bacteria within biofilms (bacteria encased in a protective matrix) which show up to 1,000 times resistance to antibiotics and can prevent chronic wounds from healing.
It was recognized wound care expert Dr. Michael S. Miller, Director at The Miller Care Group wound clinic in Indianapolis, that prescribed KerraCel Ag® for Angela.
Dr. Miller said: “I’ve been prescribing KerraCel® Ag to patients with great success, but the severity of Angela’s case demonstrates just how effective this treatment is in promoting healing without any need to consider such drastic alternatives.
“When Angela came to me, it was clear that the priority was to deal with the broad spectrum of bacteria that had managed to get into the wound, which antibiotics were not addressing. KerraCel® Ag is extremely effective in aiding healing and enabling the recovery process to take effect. It’s simple, clean and acts quickly, so it was a no-brainer for me. To achieve such a dramatic turnaround with a patient so close to a life-altering operating is medical innovation at its best.”
After treatment Angela is now able to go about her day with ease and full mobility: “I am incredibly grateful for the treatment Dr. Miller provided and for KerraCel® Ag. I’ll be forever thankful that this incredibly innovative dressing saved my foot.”
* Operational Delivery of the Multi-Disciplinary Care Pathway for Diabetic Foot Problems – British Orthopaedic Association
About Crawford Healthcare:
Crawford Healthcare is a leading international advanced wound care and dermatology company based in Knutsford, Cheshire England with a US office in Doylstown Pennsylvania. The group develops and sells advanced wound care and dermatology products and is the UK’s fastest-growing advanced wound care company. Crawford Healthcare has a direct sales presence in the UK, USA and Germany.
US website: http://crawfordhealthcare.us/
About Exciton Technologies:
Exciton Technologies is a commercial stage advanced materials development and manufacturing company, based in Edmonton, Alberta focused on the creation of technologies for preventing and treating infection. Exciton has developed a portfolio of proprietary and patented processes to incorporate its silver oxysalts (Ag Oxysalts™) technology into a range of products, including Exsalt® SD7 and T7 dressings, to target the advanced wound care and anti-infectives markets.