Fertram Sigurjonsson, CEO of Kerecis, discusses the recent acquisition, how the Company has evolved over the last decade and key milestones along its “Road to Success” in an interview with SmartTRAK.

Csaba Dózsa, habil PhD MSc, Health Economist, discusses his model for cost-effectiveness in the prevention and treatment of pressure injuries in an interview with SmartTRAK.

In this interview, Prof. Dózsa unveils his groundbreaking pressure injury (PI) prevention costing model. With a 20-year background in health economics, he embarked on this journey from Hungary's National Health Insurance Fund. His expertise shaped the German DRG point system locally and steered home care development. Establishing Med-Econ Ltd., he delved into diverse health economic studies, culminating in a sophisticated, non-linear model for PI prevention costs.

The model's complexity stems from recognizing intricate healthcare inputs and outcomes. It calculates annual PI costs across scenarios: implementing preventive care bundles with or without multi-layer dressings, and treatment-only approaches. Designed as a calculation framework, it showcases the efficacy of preventive wound care.

Among the many questions answered by Prof, Dózsa in this interview are:

• Can this model be used in any health and political environment?
• How does the use of this model affect a hospital's use of dressings?
• How would you describe the cost structure of prevention and treatment?
• Can this model and its outcome lead to systemic changes?
• How long would it take a hospital or hospital system to adapt the model to their data?
• Can this model be used equally in the case of higher-risk patients, older patients or in hospitals that see proportionally more of these patients?

The interview, conducted by Anikó Szekér, SmartTRAK Senior Analyst, Wound Care, offers insights into Prof. Dózsa's journey and his PI prevention costing model's potential. To download a complete transcript of the interview, just click the button below.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) projects Medicare home health spending in the US will grow at an 8-year (2023-2031) CAGR of +8.6% compared to +7.4% for hospital expenditures. These projections help validate that healthcare services are shifting to the home care setting. The migration is driven by efforts to reduce costs, improve access and enhance the quality of care. Policymakers continue to manipulate reimbursement formulas to incentivize change. CMS recently released the CY 2024 Home Health Prospective Payment System (PPS) Proposed Rule that includes reimbursement policy revisions that could potentially increase the utilization of disposable negative pressure wound therapy (dNPWT) in the home health setting. This free downloadable article highlights:

• The Trajectory of dNPWT,
• Historical Challenges Associated with the Uptake in the Home Setting
• Incremental Policy Efforts Designed to Mitigate Those Challenges
• Billing Complexity Stalling Growth
• Incremental Changes Show Progress
• Impact of Proposed Policy Changes. 

With the establishment of a separate payment for the dNPWT and the relatively simpler billing processes, the proposed CMS changes are a net positive for manufacturers treating wounds in the home health setting. However, given the growing competition ...

To download the complete "CMS Proposed Rule Incentivizes Home Use of Disposable NPWT" perspective article by Terry Hayslett, SmartTRAK Senior Analyst, Advanced Wound Care, just click the button below.

Discover how Europe is transforming into a hotbed of innovation for chronic wound care through the breakthrough technology of cold plasma therapy. As the global focus on chronic wounds intensifies, European markets are witnessing a surge in new technologies that offer promising solutions. From smaller, portable devices to collaborative research efforts, this article highlights the rise of cold plasma therapy and its potential to revolutionize wound care. Download the article to further explore these, and other, key points:

• Europe's lower revenue levels for advanced wound therapies compared to the US present an opportunity for new technologies to thrive.
• Cold plasma therapy, utilizing low-temperature atmospheric pressure plasmas, demonstrates impressive benefits in treating chronic wounds, including bacterial inactivation and enhanced healing.
• Recent advancements have led to the development of smaller and more portable cold plasma devices, expanding treatment options beyond hospitals to ambulatory settings and even patients' homes.
• Swiss company ActivCell Group Ag, German companies neoplas med GmbH and Plasmacure BV and Dutch company Terraplasma Medical GmbH are among the pioneering companies offering innovative cold plasma devices.
• The future of cold plasma therapy depends on the willingness of companies to collaborate, navigate regulatory challenges, and establish a distinct market presence.
• While European advancements in cold plasma therapy are promising, the highly competitive US market remains a long-term goal for most companies, necessitating FDA approval and strategic partnerships.
• The rapid growth of topical oxygen therapy in the US, driven by initiatives like the Veterans Association and state-level Medicaid approvals, could potentially outpace European progress once FDA approval is obtained.

The full article delves into the transformative potential of cold plasma therapy in chronic wound care. Explore the advancements, collaborations and challenges that shape Europe's emerging market and its race against the US in revolutionizing wound treatment. Just click the button below to download the complete "EWMA 2023 - Cold Plasma Poised for Growth in Europe" article by Kris Flinn, SmartTRAK Senior Analyst - Wound.

This SAWC Spring 2023 perspective article extensively covers a wide range of topics pertaining to skin substitutes and Cellular and Tissue-based Products (CTPs), offering in-depth insights and analysis, and highlights a multitude of areas for discussion. Some of the key topics explored in this article include:

• CAMP Companies and Products Dominate
  • Spring SAWC was dominated by companies showcasing their CAMPs, with nearly 30 companies exhibiting this year. The market is currently led by ...
    
• Reimbursement: It’s Complicated
  • Skin substitute utilization is heavily influenced by reimbursement and setting of care. The physician office currently captures the largest share of the skin substitutes market. This is primarily driven by ...
    
• Emerging Sites of Care
  • In its Site of Care module, SmartTRAK currently tracks the use of CTP or CAMP products in the surgical suite, HOPD, physician office, VA Health system and burn center. In discussions at SAWC, SmartTRAK learned ...
• Future Growth
  • Despite reimbursement hurdles, SmartTRAK projects strong growth for this segment in the coming years, primarily due to ...
    

To download and read the complete "SAWC Spring 2023: Spotlight on the Skin Substitute Market" market perspective article by Susan Paquette, SmartTRAK's VP & General Manager, Wound, just click the button below.

Biologics had a whopping quarter, Advanced Dressings saw strong gains and External Devices continue to show minimal gains due to traditional NPWT holding down the segment.

The global AWC market is split geographically, with the US accounting for just over half, followed by Europe and then ROW, due to the US using higher technology products and their allowed reimbursement. SmartTRAK has noted shifts in market share, largely driven by currency movements. In Q123, there was less of an impact. From Q221 to Q123, the US went from 52.6% share to 53.1%, Europe from 27.9% to 28.6% and ROW from 19.5% to 18.2%.

Among the many topics covered in detail in SmartTRAK's comprehensive Q123 Advanced Wound Care Market Recap* are:

• Complete Q123 Advanced Wound Care Market Overview
• SmartTRAK's Expert Market Analysis and Insights
• All AWC Companies' News, Revenues, Data, Charts and Market Shares
• WW Advanced Dressings: Acceleration of Continued Solid Growth
• Biologics: An Impressive Quarter
  
  • Skin Substitutes/CTPs
  • Topical Delivery/Drug
  • Collagen/Active Dressings
• External Devices: Single-use NPWT and Topical Oxygen Therapy Drive Growth
• Growth Analysis – Currency Having a Less Strong Impact
  • Growth Details for Key Companies in Q123
• Other Notable Q123 AWC Events

3M remained the global revenue leader in the Q123 WW AWC market, with Smith+Nephew (SNN) is in second place and Mölnlycke rounding out the top three,  with revenues of ...

Read the entire Q123 AWC Market Recap, including SmartTRAK's expert analysis, news, data, charts, company revenues and shares*

*These links and the complete unedited article can only be viewed by SmartTRAK subscribers to this module. For more information on SmartTRAK, including how to receive a demo and subscribe, please click the button below.

New SaaS technology offering delivers competitive advantage in rapidly changing Ambulatory Surgery Center market.

SmartTRAK, the leading global Medtech business and market software intelligence solution in the Orthopedics, Wound Care, Regenerative Medicine and Neuro Therapy markets, is pleased to announce the release of ASC Insights, the industry’s first-ever commercially available platform-based solution for the growing Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) market. ASC Insights provides real-time insights and rich data to help clients better understand market trends and accelerate commercial growth strategies.

In recent years, the Orthopedic ASC market, valued at over $10 billion, has undergone a significant transition as surgeries increasingly shift from traditional inpatient settings to outpatient ASCs. This shift necessitates that Medtech companies explore new ways to stay informed about myriad data sources and market shifts to drive their commercial growth strategies.

The ASC Insights offering is an extension of the SmartTRAK platform, encompassing comprehensive market analyses and proprietary qualitative insights on trends, as well as readily extractable quantitative metrics. Alternatively, enterprise customers can seamlessly integrate these metrics into their business intelligence platforms. Subscribers to SmartTRAK ASC Insights gain access to a historical news archive, recaps of changes in key facility ownership and information on technologies and reimbursement. Furthermore, customers receive valuable Daily Updates, ensuring up-to-date and timely coverage of noteworthy ASC industry developments. They also enjoy on-demand, direct access to SmartTRAK expert analysts.

The success or failure of medical technology often hinges on dynamics occurring within healthcare policy and reimbursement. In this article, SmartTRAK highlights policy and reimbursement themes from SAWC Spring 2023

SAWC Spring 2023 welcomed clinicians, researchers and industry to Washington, DC, to share knowledge and network on the latest developments in advanced wound care. While the attention centered on advances in disease management and technological innovation, SmartTRAK noted compelling discussions involving healthcare policy and reimbursement that may have been missed by some industry participants.

In this article, which can be downloaded here, SmartTRAK explores coverage and payment dynamics surrounding the following topics:

• Artificial Intelligence: Implications for Advanced Wound Care
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the hot topic of the day. Companies seek to capitalize on it, governments want to regulate it, some workers fear it ...
    
• Medicare Advantage: Growing Concerns About Claims Denials
  • Medicare Advantage plans are under fire for reportedly restricting access to medically necessary care ...
    
• Topical Oxygen Therapy: Reconsidering Local MAC Coverage Policy
  • In 2017, industry stakeholders requested that CMS remove the non-coverage of topical oxygen therapies (TOT) from the National Coverage Determination (NCD) Manual ...
    

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the hot topic of the day. Companies seek to capitalize on it, governments want to regulate it and some workers fear it. Given the attention, it is fitting that sessions touching on AI bookended SAWC Spring 2023. Daniel Kraft, MD, opened the keynote address with captivating slides on how medicine is positioned within the fourth industrial revolution, where robotics, big data and AI are transforming care and leading to ...

To download and read the complete "Underlying Dynamics in Healthcare Policy and Reimbursement" by Terry Hayslett, Senior Analyst, Advanced Wound Care, just click the button below.

With Smith+Nephew having dominated the wound debridement market for over a decade, SmartTRAK looks at how 2023 could be a year where we see the first signs of disruption.

The WW Wound Debridement Market is forecast to grow at a five-year CAGR of ~5.1%, according to SmartTRAK estimates. Although Smith+Nephew (SNN) has long dominated this market with more than 74% share, SmartTRAK believes 2023 could be a year of disruption in wound debridement as multiple players across a range of segments are poised to see financial returns after years of commercial progress. It is also worth noting that sharp debridement accounts for over half of the debridement procedures in the US, so the route to market growth is clear.