Healthcare Industry News: ACL repair
News Release - December 11, 2006
Clearant Announces Agreement to Expand Its Direct Distribution Growth Initiative (R) to the Sports Medicine Market in the New York Region
Agreement to Accelerate Ramp up in the Usage of Clearant Process Sterile Implants under the Direct Distribution Initiative; Addressable Market Now $ 350 MM Per YearLOS ANGELES--(HSMN NewsFeed)--Clearant, Inc. (OCTCBB:CLRI) announced today that it signed an agreement with OR Specialties, a leading distributor of orthopedic surgical supplies, to represent and distribute Clearant ProcessŪ Sterile Implants for allograft sport medicine surgeries. Under the terms of the agreement, OR Specialties will deploy its team of 13 sales representatives to market the implants to the sports medicine specialists through hospitals and surgery centers throughout New York, Northern New Jersey, Connecticut and Rhode Island and Western Massachusetts.
"The growing recognition of the Clearant ProcessŪ brand is opening new doors for Clearant to reach sport medicine surgeons. To-date, Clearant does not have any sales representation in the North East region. As a result, we are pleased to be able to complement our direct distribution initiative with a group of sales people as successful as those of OR Specialties. This will, immediately, give Clearant greater market reach in the North East region and we anticipate that this will lead to faster adoption for the Clearant Process sterile sports medicine implants in that region." said Clearant Chief Executive Officer Alain Delongchamp.
"A growing number of my patients that require ligament reconstructive surgery are good candidates for allograft surgeries and are demanding the safest implants. Clearant helps me meet this rising demand with a supply of sterile implants," commented Dr. Fred Cushner, orthopedic surgeon at the ISK Institute in New York. "Based upon a growing body of clinical evidence and the results that I see first-hand in patient outcomes, Clearant's sterile implants are the best solution available today for virtually eliminating the risk of infection and ensuring high-level, post-operative performance of the tissue."
"Each one of our 13 sales representatives has a relationship with an average of 20 surgeons in their individual territory thanks to our very broad product line which includes products for several types of sport medicine surgeries such as shoulder and ACL repair. As our sales representatives are working with nearly 100 % of the hospital staff and approximately 260 orthopedic surgeons in our region, we are seeing a significant demand for safer tissue." said Bill Tobin, OR Specialties. "We expect that a substantial number of the surgeons we have relationships with will become regular users of Clearant Process implants in the near term."
"This alliance between Clearant and OR Specialties comes in response to the growing demand for sterile allograft tissue from orthopedic surgeons," said Clearant Chief Executive Officer Alain Delongchamp.
The Clearant Process is the first technology capable of eliminating all types of pathogens in tissue implant sterilized in its final packaging, while maintaining the integrity of the essential underlying protein in the tissue. Products processed with the Clearant Process can achieve, and even exceed, levels of sterility associated with medical devices.
About Clearant, Inc.
Clearant, Inc. is a leader in pathogen inactivation for biological products. Clearant has developed the patent-protected Clearant Process, which substantially reduces all types of bacteria and viruses in biological products while maintaining the functionality of the underlying tissue implant or protein. The Company began to distribute directly to surgeons, hospitals and clinics Clearant Process sterile implants in June 2006; in addition, Clearant continues to license the Clearant Process and provides its patented sterilization services to tissue banks and other biological products manufacturers. As of the end of 1Q 2006, Clearant had 10 license and service agreements with tissue banks. To date more than 9,000 patients have been successfully implanted with Clearant Process sterile implants supplied by one of the Company's licensed partners. Whereas various competing sterilization methods only kill specific types of pathogens (such as bacteria or lipid-enveloped viruses) for specific products, the Clearant Process reduces all types of pathogens for products across many market segments including tissue implants, plasma proteins, recombinant products, medical devices and blood products. Also, the Clearant Process can be applied at various stages of product processing and/or manufacturing, including in the final packaging. For more information, please visit www.clearant.com.
About O.R. Specialties - Superior Surgical and Post Surgical Products and Services
O.R. Specialties provides both surgical and post surgical products and is a leading service provider to hospitals, surgery centers, doctor's offices, rehab providers, and patient homes. Our headquarters are in Port Chester, New York, and we have satellite offices throughout the region we serve. Our surgical division is made up of tenured professional consultants that specialize in orthopedic sports medicine, trauma, joint replacement, and laparoscopic surgical procedures and equipment. Our surgical teams are backed by service associates in the field and office support in Port Chester, New York.
OR Specialties' post operative/rehab division deliver high quality products to meet the needs of patients recovering from orthopedic injuries. Our knowledgeable sales team works directly with surgeons and rehab providers to provide the proper product for each patient. Our post operative sales force is backed by an extensive team who arrange everything from insurance billing to home delivery of products. For more information, please visit www.or-specialties.com
Forward-Looking Statements
Except for statements of historical fact, the matters discussed in this press release are forward looking and made pursuant to the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, in particular statements regarding surgeons strongly recommending the use of implants with tissue treated by the CLEARANT PROCESS, and the conclusions from a study by surgeons to build demand for sterilized tissue. These forward-looking statements reflect numerous assumptions and involve a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the company's control, which may cause actual results to differ materially from stated expectations. These risk factors include, among others, limited operating history, difficulty in developing, exploiting and protecting proprietary technologies, results of additional clinical studies, acceptance and success of our direct distribution of allografts, efficacy of the technology, intense competition and substantial regulation in the biotechnology industry, and additional risks discussed in the company's filings with the SEC, available on the SEC web site http://www.sec.gov.
Source: Clearant
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