WUWHS – a hybrid event with a local touch

Back Into the Water
After having been postponed several times, the World Union of Wound Healing Societies (WUWHS) finally took place in Abu Dhabi in early March and SmartTRAK was there. Mölnlycke* came in hot, launching Avance Solo* in the region, whereas most other companies were represented by local distributors. SmartTRAK noted that the hybrid format was an interesting concept, unfortunately, impacted by technical issues.

The Olympics of Wound Care
WUWHS is similar to the Olympics in the sense that it is an event with a global focus held every fourth year, every time by a new organizer. Like the Olympics, the WUWHS was postponed in 2020 due to COVID-19, the last one was held six years ago, and the pandemic also impacted both attendance and format. A negative COVID test was required both to enter and leave Abu Dhabi, which likely made attendees participate online rather than in person. SmartTRAK estimates that 20% to 30% of the participants were there in person and 70% to 80% participated online. Unfortunately, the event was full of technical issues and there were also many speakers missing when they were supposed to present, which brought down the overall experience for those who attended in person.

Mölnlycke Launches Avance Solo in the Region
Mölnlycke overshadowed all other companies at the event. It had the largest exhibition, an Innovation Area lounge, a high international presence, held the most lunch symposia and was the only company doing a major product launch.

The Company launched its ...

Jack Kalavritinos, Former HHS/FDA Senior Official and Principal of JK Strategies, discusses the importance and benefits of government affairs in medtech

Jack Kalavritinos is the Founder and Principal of JK Strategies, a communications and public policy firm that helps organizations develop winning communication and policy strategies. Jack is also a former senior government official and appointee in HHS, FDA and DOL. Jack has decades of Washington, DC government, political and business experience including in the medtech sector with Covidien.

In this interview with SmartTRAK, Jack shares his thoughts on the benefits to medtech commercial leaders of developing collaborative relationships with their government affairs colleagues. Specifically, SmartTRAK’s interview with Jack covers the next phases of the COVID-19 public health emergency, the potential impact of the midterm elections and ways companies can work with the FDA.

To find out more, including Jack’s take on how medtech commercial leaders can develop relationships with their Representatives and Senators, click on the following video recorded live via Zoom. Outlined below are specific interview topics by the minute. To download a complete transcript of the interview, click here.

Emerging from the COVID-19 era, wound care innovation is driven by smaller companies

In April, the Symposium on Advanced Wound Care (SAWC) Spring 2022 returned to an in-person format for the first time since 2019. Though the turnout was below expectations, attendees enjoyed reconnecting with clinicians, engaging with vendors and catching up with colleagues and competitors.

Despite being three years since the last SAWC Spring, large wound care companies like Smith+Nephew* (SNN), Mölnlycke*, 3M* and others were oddly without major product introductions. SmartTRAK has learned that extended FDA review timelines and supply challenges may be playing a significant role in this reality. Companies have publicly commented that innovation and new product launches are planned for 2022, but timelines must have slipped past the SAWC Spring deadlines.

Regardless, innovation was not completely absent from SAWC Spring as smaller companies introduced new products and more companies exhibited IT-driven diagnostic, measurement and data-capture technologies.

(The SmartTRAK team will be attending the upcoming European Wound Management Association (EWMA) event May 23-25 in Paris. We would love to schedule some time to meet and hear your perspectives and views and discuss how SmartTRAK can help you make more informed strategic business decisions.)

In this article, SmartTRAK highlights new products and novel technologies exhibited at SAWC Spring 2022.

Increased wound prevalence meets new software and solutions at WCT 2022.

There was a positive energy in the room at the 5^th Wound Care Today (WCT) conference as industry and clinicians came together in Milton Keynes. COVID-19 infection rates remain high in the UK but this is not being reflected in hospitalizations or deaths, leading to a national determination to move forward without restrictions. The pandemic has, however, shaped the priorities of those present and in a range of discussions. SmartTRAK encountered a commercial eagerness to make up for lost time and a looming burden of chronic wounds.

The SmartTRAK team will be attending the upcoming European Wound Management Association (EWMA) event May 23-25 in Paris. We would love to schedule some time to meet and hear your perspectives and views and discuss how SmartTRAK can help you make more informed strategic business decisions.

Jason Winkler, Sales VP of cybersecurity startup Device Authority, discusses the state of cybersecurity in healthcare in an interview with SmartTRAK.

To find out more, including the devices most vulnerable to cybersecurity threats and how medical device manufacturers should think about designing cybersecurity measures into their connected products, click on the following video to listen to the full interview (17:29 min). A link to download the complete transcript of the interview is also provided below.

Macroeconomic headwinds are projected to continue through the first half of 2022.

Supply chain headaches and inflationary pressures significantly impacted wound care companies in 2021. Though Advanced Wound Care revenue rebounded +11.5% in 2021 according to SmartTRAK’s Financial Dashboard, it was not without strong headwinds of higher input costs, logistical nightmares and labor shortages.

To understand how these macroeconomic trends affected wound care companies, SmartTRAK reviewed quarterly and fiscal year earnings reports from FY21 to see how various wound care companies reported the company-specific impact. From troubles sourcing materials to higher input costs and the need to raise prices, SmartTRAK uncovered a consistent trend of macroeconomic pressures affecting many global and regional wound care manufacturers.

New Products:

• Cardinal Health* 
  

  Cardinal Health announced the launch of the first surgical incise drape using Chlorhexidine Gluconate (CHG). The drape features Avery Dennison's patented BeneHold CHG adhesive technology, which helps reduce the risk of surgical site contamination w/ organisms associated w/ SSIs.

• Coloplast*

  Coloplast is gradually launching Alprep Pad in select markets. Now available in the UK, Australia and New Zeeland. Alprep Pad is a foam for mechanical cleansing and debridement of wounds.

Scott Laster, CEO and co-founder of MiCare Path, discusses the present and future of monitoring patients between office visits in an interview with SmartTRAK

Scott Laster is the CEO and co-founder of MiCare Path, a leading platform to connect patients with their providers between visits. Scott is a medical device industry veteran with 15+ years of experience in the trenches launching products and supporting clinicians. In this interview with SmartTRAK, Scott shares his thoughts on the benefits of monitoring patients between office visits, the evolution of reimbursement of remote monitoring and where MiCare Path is going in the future.

To find out more, including Scott’s take on how MiCare Path benefits orthopedic and wound care patients and clinicians, click on the following video recorded live via Google Meet (17:04 min). Specific interview topics by timecode are outlined below. To download a complete transcript of the interview, click here.

SmartTRAK examines recent trends in breast implants and discusses their future impact on breast matrices.

Breast matrices, whether acellular dermal matrices (ADMs) or biosynthetics, have enabled improved outcomes in implant-based breast reconstruction and have contributed, in large part, to the revival of the prepectoral breast reconstruction technique. As the number of breast implant procedures has grown, so has the use of breast matrices. However, SmartTRAK believes the side effects and health consequences now associated with breast implants, while rare, will negatively impact breast implant usage and thus reduce the growth rate of breast matrices in 2022 and beyond.

In this informative Outlook article by Doug Devens, SmartTRAK's Product Director and Senior Editor, Wound, Doug covers:

• The Relationship between Breast Surgery and ADM Usage
• Trends in Implant Usage
• Recent Concerns that May Affect Breast Implant Usage
• The Future Outlook for 2022 and Beyond

Kathleen “Kathy” Schaum, President of Kathleen D. Schaum & Associates, discusses her thoughts on the impact of COVID-19 on wound care and reimbursement.

Kathy is a “go-to” provider of wound care reimbursement information, education and strategy to manufacturers and providers. In this interview with SmartTRAK, Kathy shares her thoughts on the impact of COVID-19 on the delivery and reimbursement of wound care and the advancements in remote monitoring, diagnostics and sensors. To find out more, including Kathy’s take on skin substitute/CTP trends, click on the following video recorded live via Google Meet (25:13 min). Specific interview topics by time code are outlined below. A link to the complete transcript of the interview is also provided below.