February 6, 2008
Urodynamix NIRS IAP Data Presented at Society of Critical Care
Medicine Annual Meeting
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, February 6, 2008 - Urodynamix Technologies Ltd. (TSX-V:URO) today announced that new clinical data describing the application of the Company’s near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) technology for intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) monitoring were presented by a team of Clinical Investigators at the Society of Critical Care Medicine’s 37th Critical Care Congress in Honolulu, Hawaii on February 2-6, 2008.
Drs. Phil Laird, PhD, Sandy Widder, MD, FRCSC and Principal Investigator Dr. Andrew Kirkpatrick, MD, FRCSC, FACS, Associate Professor of Surgery and Critical Care Medicine at the University of Calgary and Foothills Medical Centre, presented an abstract entitled “Near Infrared Spectroscopy of the Rectus Sheath During Controlled Intra-Abdominal Hypertension.” This study examined IAP in laparoscopic surgery patients, expanding upon Urodynamix’s ongoing ICU patient study at Foothills Medical Centre (see news release dated September 13, 2007).
“Our preliminary studies have shown that NIRS technology can be used to safely and non-invasively monitor intra-abdominal pressure and abdominal ischemia in ICU and laparoscopic surgery patients,” said Dr. Kirkpatrick. “We are encouraged by the progress being made and are confident that NIRS can be used to measure important changes associated with IAP. This technology may one day help prevent the onset of abdominal compartment syndrome, a condition caused by sustained elevations in IAP that can be fatal if not promptly diagnosed and treated.”
Urodynamix’s NIRS IAP monitor provides a continuous, non-invasive method of evaluating IAP in critical care patients, many of whom are at risk of developing abdominal compartment syndrome (ACS), a life-threatening condition that occurs due to traumatic, hemorrhagic, surgical or vascular injuries. Effective treatment of ACS requires prompt diagnosis and intervention. Urodynamix believes that its NIRS IAP technology can continuously track IAP and abdominal ischemia and replace more invasive, intermittent techniques that are currently used to estimate IAP.
The Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) is the largest multi-professional organization dedicated to ensuring excellence and consistency in the practice of critical care. With 13,000 members in 80 countries, SCCM is the only organization that represents all professional components of the critical care team. The Society offers a variety of activities that promote excellence in patient care, education, research, and advocacy.
About Abdominal Compartment Syndrome
Abdominal compartment syndrome (ACS) is multiple organ dysfunction caused by the sustained elevation of intra-abdominal pressure (IAP, or the pressure concealed within the abdominal cavity). Physical examination is not an accurate indicator of elevated IAP, which presents in up to 50% of critically ill patients. Increases in IAP can rapidly advance to ACS, which is fatal if untreated.
Approximately 5 million North American patients are treated in ICUs every year, and current IAP monitoring techniques rely on manual, intermittent, and highly invasive catheter- or needle-based procedures. Continuous IAP monitoring may allow clinicians to detect the onset of ACS and intervene earlier, resulting in significant cost savings and improved patient outcomes. The global market for automated, non-invasive IAP monitor is estimated to be in excess of $2 billion.
About Urodynamix Technologies Ltd.
Urodynamix Technologies is a Canadian medical device company developing and commercializing non-invasive medical technology based on proprietary applications of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS). The Company is currently focused on products that aid in the diagnosis and treatment of urinary incontinence, lower urinary tract symptoms, prostate cancer, benign prostatic hyperplasia, and traumatic increases in intra-abdominal pressure that cause abdominal compartment syndrome. Urodynamix’s breakthrough medical technology has the potential to beneficially affect more than 200 million people worldwide.
On behalf of the Board,
“Barry Allen”
President & CEO
Urodynamix Technologies Ltd.
Certain information contained in this press release may be forward-looking and is subject to unknown risks, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth or implied herein. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove correct. The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
For further information, please contact:
Craig Pamplin, PhD, CFA
Director, Corporate Development and Communications
Urodynamix Technologies Ltd.
Tel: (604) 638-0247
Email: cpamplin@urodynamix.com
www.urodynamix.com |
