LAUSANNE, Switzerland and BAD HOMBURG, Germany, November 3,
2015 /PRNewswire/ --
Debiotech SA, a Swiss medical device developer with expertise in
innovative technologies and miniaturized medical equipment and
devices, and Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA (the
"company" or "Fresenius Medical Care"; Frankfurt Stock Exchange:
FME / New York Stock Exchange: FMS), the world's largest provider
of dialysis products and services, announced today they have
entered into an exclusive partnership to develop a portfolio of
state-of-the-art peritoneal dialysis (PD) technologies. This
partnership will bring Debiotech's specialized expertise to the
dialysis industry.
The new product platform will offer dialysis machines that are
lightweight and compact, making it more practical to dialyze at
home. The smaller size of Fresenius Medical Care's new
generation of PD machines will provide flexibility for dialysis
patients when they travel, their intuitive design will promote ease
of use, and their accompanying teaching methods are intended to
make it easy for patients who are new to PD to use the
machines.
Experts from both companies are working together to plan for
multiple generations of innovations, offering more patients the
option to dialyze at home than ever before.
"This agreement represents an ideal synergy to help patients
everywhere who suffer from end stage renal disease receive the most
appropriate treatment at home," said Dr. Frédéric Neftel, President
and CEO of Debiotech. "We are very proud to work together
with Fresenius Medical Care's outstanding teams in order to bring
new home peritoneal dialysis products to market and offer the hope
of improved quality of life for many patients around the
world."
"We are dedicated to continuing to produce home dialysis
machines that are as easy and convenient as possible for our
customers to operate, because this is what they demand and
deserve," said Mark Costanzo,
President, Fresenius Medical Care Renal Therapies Group. "We expect
that collaborating with such an exceptional team will provide
dialysis patients with generations of products that will offer them
a new level of ease of use and flexibility to help them meet their
goal to dialyze at home."
The Fresenius Medical Care and Debiotech partnership is
exclusive globally, with the exception of Japan.
Worldwide, more than 2.6 million patients with end stage renal
disease regularly undergo dialysis treatment, a vital blood
cleansing procedure that substitutes the function of the
kidney.
About Debiotech
Debiotech has specialized, for over twenty five years, in the
research and development of innovative medical devices, with a
focus on miniaturization of drug delivery systems and artificial
organs for the treatment of severe diseases such as diabetes, renal
failure, cardiovascular diseases and cancer. The company's products
are based on micromechanics and nanotechnologies, as well as novel
technologies and advanced multimedia software. Debiotech has
received numerous prestigious awards for its innovative products,
such as several "Medical Design Excellence Awards", "Swiss
Technology" and "Medtech" Awards. Debiotech has over 40 exclusive
license agreements with leading companies in medical devices and
pharmaceuticals and holds over 500 patents worldwide.
Further information on Debiotech can be found at
http://www.debiotech.com.
About Fresenius Medical Care
Fresenius Medical Care is the world's largest provider of
products and services for individuals with renal diseases of which
more than 2.6 million patients worldwide regularly undergo dialysis
treatment. Through its network of 3,402 dialysis clinics, Fresenius
Medical Care provides dialysis treatments for 290,250 patients
around the globe. Fresenius Medical Care is also the leading
provider of dialysis products such as dialysis machines or
dialyzers. Along with the core business, the company focuses on
expanding the range of additional medical services in the field of
care coordination. For more information about Fresenius Medical
Care, visit the company's website at
http://www.freseniusmedicalcare.com.
Disclaimer
This release contains forward-looking statements that are
subject to various risks and uncertainties. Actual results could
differ materially from those described in these forward-looking
statements due to certain factors, including changes in business,
economic and competitive conditions, regulatory reforms, foreign
exchange rate fluctuations, uncertainties in litigation or
investigative proceedings, and the availability of financing. These
and other risks and uncertainties are detailed in Fresenius Medical
Care AG & Co. KGaA's reports filed with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission. Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA does
not undertake any responsibility to update the forward-looking
statements in this release.
Media Contacts:
Laurent-Dominique Piveteau
COO
Debiotech SA
Phone: +41-21-623-60-00
Fax: +41-21-623-60-01
email: ld.piveteau@debiotech.com
Matthias Link
Corporate Communications
Fresenius Medical Care
Else-Kröner-Straße 1
61352 Bad Homburg
Germany
T +49-6172-609-2872
F +49-6172-609-2294
matthias.link@fresenius.com
http://www.freseniusmedicalcare.com
Media Contact North America:
Jon D. Stone
T +1-781-699-9704
M +1-781-392-4680
jonathan.d.stone@fmc-na.com