Cath Lab Digest

Total Contact Casting for Diabetic Foot Wounds

  Wheat Ridge, Colo., August 19, 2010 – MedEfficiency, Inc., a medical products company that is focused on the development, manufacturing, and marketing of medical devices for treating chronic wounds and lower extremity injuries, today announces that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued patent No. 7,758,529 related to the TCC-EZ Total Contact Cast.

  This is the fifth patent granted in the U.S. covering MedEfficiency’s line of proprietary total contact cast products.

  “MedEfficiency’s dedication to the innovation process is reflected in our receiving this patent. It underscores our collaborative approach to developing products that meet the needs of the patient with a diabetic foot wound - and those that treat them,” said Jodie Currie, President and COO, MedEfficiency.

  Total Contact Casting is considered the gold standard for the treatment of diabetic foot wounds. The cast is used to aid the healing of diabetic foot ulcers by redistributing weight away from the wound along the entire plantar aspect (sole) of the foot and lower leg. It is applied in such a way to contact the exact contour of the foot and leg thereby known as "Total Contact Cast” or TCC. TCC, in conjunction with comprehensive wound care protocols, provides a dynamic approach to complete immobilization, which allows the tissue to heal without being disturbed or traumatized by repetitive injury or shear forces.

  “MedEfficiency’s TCC-EZ System is a faster to apply, less technique sensitive casting system developed by our clinical and engineering teams,” indicated Dr. Jeffrey Jensen, FACFAS, CEO of MedEfficiency. The system provides a patented innovative fishnet mesh cast which constructs a one layered cast, supported by an exclusively designed outer boot that provides additional support and stability for the diabetic foot ulcer patient. The boot is available in regular, large and extra large size to accommodate the needs of patients of all sizes.

About MedEfficiency

  MedEfficiency, Inc. is a medical products company that is focused on the development, manufacturing, and marketing of medical devices for treating chronic wounds and lower extremity injuries. MedEfficiency specializes in total contact casting (TCC) products, which are considered the gold standard for off-loading diabetic foot ulcers. MedEfficiency has developed innovative new products using advanced technology to change the ways these conditions are treated and result in improved clinical outcomes and more cost effective treatments. To learn more, please visit www.medefficiency.com.

Diabetic Foot Ulcers and Total Contact Casting

  According the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of people in the United States with diagnosed diabetes has more than doubled over the past 15 years. ¹ Of the estimated 23.6 million diabetic Americans, 5.7 million (or one quarter) are unaware they have the disease. ¹ It has been estimated that another 57 million people have pre-diabetes, a condition that increases the risk for developing diabetes as well as pre-diabetic neuropathy. ¹ The total estimated cost of diabetes for the United States in 2007 was $174 billion. ¹ Foot ulcers will affect up to 25 percent of people with diabetes during their lifetime. ² People with diabetes have a 30-fold higher lifetime risk of undergoing a lower extremity amputation in comparison to those without diabetes. ³ Foot ulcers precede lower extremity amputations 85 percent of the time ⁴and more than 60% of non-traumatic lower-limb amputations occur in people with diabetes. ⁵

  It’s estimated that the number of patients living with diabetes will double by 2050.

  A consequence of this dramatic increase in the number of patients with diabetes will be the increase in diabetes-related complications such as the development of diabetic foot ulcers. Addressing pressure reduction in the treatment of diabetic foot wounds is considered a critical component of therapy. The total contact cast has proven to be the gold standard of treatment because of its ability to reduce and redistribute pressure (often called off-loading) and facilitate patient adherence to the treatment regimen.

  The “total contact cast” is a technique in which a cast is applied in such a way to contact the exact contour of the foot and leg from the calf and shin to the toes, enclosing the entire foot and lower leg. Pressure is redistributed over the entire plantar aspect of the foot and lower leg, thereby reducing the pressure on the wound, allowing the wound to progress to healing.

Contact Information: Nancy Laundy, MedEfficiency, Inc., 866.357.7755 ext. 6, njl@medefficiency.com

References

1. CDC. Diabetes 2008: disabling disease to double by 2050. 2008; Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/publications/aag/pdf/diabetes.pdf.

2. Singh, N., D.G. Armstrong, and B.A. Lipsky, Preventing foot ulcers in patients with diabetes. Jama, 2005. 293(2): p. 217-28.

3. Lavery, L.A., et al., Risk factors for foot infections in individuals with diabetes. Diabetes Care, 2006. 29(6): p. 1288-93.

4. Pecoraro, R.E., G.E. Reiber, and E.M. Burgess, Pathways to diabetic limb amputation: basis for prevention. Diabetes Care, 1990. 13: p. 513-521.

5. CDC. National diabetes fact sheet: general information and national estimates on diabetes in the United States, 2007. 2008 [cited 2008; Available from: http://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pubs/factsheet07.htm#contents.