ADCON®-T/N Used in Successful Surgeries --Article Published in British Journal of Plastic Surgery-- Cleveland, OH-July 12, 2000 -- Gliatech Inc. (Nasdaq: GLIA) today announced an article entitled "The use of ADCON®-T/N glycosaminoglycan gel in the revision of tethered scars." was published in the July 2000, volume 53, issue 5 of the British Journal of Plastic Surgery. Drs. D.E. Boyce, of Wordsley Hospital in the United Kingdom, and G. Bantick and M.S.C. Murison of Morriston Hospital, also in the United Kingdom, authored the article which contained detailed case reports of three patients who underwent reoperations for existing scarring from previous trauma and, in conjunction with surgical scar removal, were treated with ADCON®- T/N. In these three patients, there was improvement in patient outcome from previous problematic scar which was tethering adjacent tissues.
The first patient had undergone a tracheostomy to facilitate anesthesia during cardiac surgery four years previously. Subsequent to her surgery, her tracheostomy site healed but a contracted vertical band of scar resulted in difficulty in elevating her head and discomfort on swallowing. ADCON®- T/N gel was applied in a surgery where the old scar was freed by sharp dissection and excised. Two years post-operatively, the patient has no signs of recurrence of scar contractures and has no difficulty swallowing.
The second patient had also undergone a tracheostomy to facilitate ventilation as a result of an accident five years previously. As with the previous patient, scar tethered to the underlying trachea, which produced discomfort on swallowing due to elevation of the larynx. The patient underwent surgery where the scar was freed by sharp dissection and ADCON®- T/N gel was applied between the skin and trachea. The patient remains symptom free one year postoperatively.
The third patient had suffered a dog bite to the right facial cheek five years previously, which subsequently became infected. As a result, the patient experienced an unsightly area of facial disfigurement due to scar tethering the skin of the cheek to underlying structures, which was accentuated with smiling. During a reoperation, the old scar was excised and the subdermal tethering released, after which ADCON®- T/N gel was applied in the subcutaneous layer. The patient's post-operative review at five months showed a well healed scar with no tethering on smiling, and one year post surgery, the patient remained free of subdermal tethering.
ADCON®-T/N is Gliatech's second commercially available product designed to inhibit postsurgical scarring and adhesions following tendon and peripheral nerve surgeries. ADCON®-T/N received European Union (EU) regulatory approval for commercial distribution within the E.U. member countries in 1996, and is currently available in 28 countries outside of the U.S. The Company's first commercially available product, ADCON®-L gel, is a similar product to ADCON®-T/N, and is approved to prevent scarring and adhesions following lumbar spine surgeries. ADCON®-L is available in the U.S. and 28 international countries, and the two products have now been used in over 155,000 surgeries worldwide. Gliatech is engaged in the discovery and development of biosurgery and therapeutic products to improve surgical outcomes and to treat neurological disorders. The biosurgery products include the ADCON® family of products, which are designed to inhibit postsurgical scarring and adhesions, and a proprietary monoclonal antibody to treat anti-inflammatory disorders. Gliatech's neurological disorders programs are focused on developing small molecule drug candidates to modulate the cognitive state of the nervous system and to treat the symptoms of schizophrenia.
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