Uluru set to launch Altrazeal wound care product in several markets

Wound care company Uluru (OTCQB:ULUR) has created the “ideal wound product”, according to CEO Kerry Gray, with 2012 set to be a busy year for commercial milestones.
The company’s Altrazeal is a scientifically engineered product, which is based on Uluru’s NanoFlex proprietary technology. It is a sterile powder that when applied to a moist wound, interacts with bodily fluids and hydrates. The NanoFlex powder then aggregates and creates a moist wound dressing that conforms to the surface of the wound and seals it – helping to reduce pain.
The result is an engineered advanced material designed to provide specific properties to enhance healing and support tissue repair. The dressing, which is composed of biocompatible materials used in several medical devices, is a micro-porous, skin-like film that is intended as a primary treatment for chronic wounds, such as leg ulcers, and diabetic ulcers, and acute wounds, trauma and burns.
Altrazeal contours to mimic  all wound sizes and shapes, and contains 68 percent water, which is almost equivalent to the skin – maintaining a moist microenvironment, the company said.
Gray says the product’s vapour transportation rate, or the rate at which the fluid from the wound is transported through the capillaries into the atmosphere, is over 10 times greater than competitive items on the market. This effectively manages fluid from the wound which allows for extended recommended wear time of up to 10 days, and decreased pressure at the wound bed – meaning support for cellular function and tissue repair.
The small pore size within the material also prevents bacterial penetration and does not allow tissue to infiltrate, but does allow oxygen to the wound.
A clinical study of 16 patients also showed a statistically significant reduction in the amount of pain felt by patients when compared to a leading product in the market. Patients have also reported a “dramatic reduction in pain”, says Gray, when using Altrazeal on venous leg ulcers or burns.
Gray recounts a patient that had a wound of 49 square inches for 27 years prior to  using Altrazeal  that over time, because of the pain reduction, allowed for more and more compression therapy which is necessary for healing. The wound was eventually healed.
The product  is  easy to remove by applying saline solution to the material, then peeling it off “like a band-aid”. Gray says that the extended wear time means less dressing changes as well as nursing intervention in hospitals, providing for a cost-effective product.
Altrazeal is already approved in the US, Australia, New Zealand and all throughout Europe – with the company set to market the product in Australia, New Zealand and Germany later this year.
Gray says  that markets such as Germany, Australia and New Zealand are “extremely attractive” due to their emphasis on saving costs within the health care system, which is a major product advantage of Altrazeal.
Uluru is also working with its existing licensee to secure the necessary product approval in China – targeted for around mid-2012 – as well as additional Asian markets where the CE Mark is accepted.
"Launching Altrazeal in China is a high priority as it is projected that the Chinese market, which is currently approximately $25 billion, will grow to $85 billion by 2013," says Gray.

Given the product’s proven effectiveness in diabetic foot ulcers and venous ulcers, the company is positioned to gain a  significant share of the large expanding wound segment.

Indeed, bolstering Altrazeal’s international presence is important as the advanced wound care segment of the global wound care market is estimated at $6.5 billion, said Uluru.

The company is in ongoing talks with strategic partners to market the product in the US, as well as in Canada and Mexico – where approval is still necessary, but can be attained “quickly”, says Gray.

Plans are also in place for the launch of the wound care product in the near future into the veterinary market – where Novartis Animal Health is its worldwide partner.

Gray adds that the company is looking to extend its product line with a smaller 0.75 gram size of Altrazeal, reducing the price for smaller wounds, and making it “more competitive” in the hospital market.

“Altrazeal is a major advance in wound care, with a huge pharmacoeconomic benefit, as it reduces nursing intervention and has the scientific properties to enhance wound healing,” says Gray.

“It is an outstanding product, with the potential to save the health care system a lot of money.”
Aside from Altrazeal, the specialty pharmaceutical company has a portfolio of wound management and oral care products, including its
OraDisc B product for oral pain. The benzocaine disc provides a controlled amount of local anesthetic to the covered area without numbing the tongue and other parts of the oral cavity.
The company also has two FDA approved products, Aphthasol and OraDisc A, for the prevention and treatment of canker sores. Meda the company’s European partner is preparing to submit OraDisc A for approval in Europe.
Uluru has received its first European order for the launch of Altrazeal and  is in the process of making  product for launch in seven different markets, says Gray. The company’s stock closing price on March 31, 2012 was 25 cents.