TWC News Update

New HCPCS Codes Awarded for Wound Care

  A pair of procedures by Spiracur Inc., Sunnyvale, CA, for the delivery of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) has gained Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) approval by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The HCPCS codes G0456 and G0457, which apply to the company’s mechanically-powered SNaP® Wound Care System, provide a payment mechanism for NPWT procedures furnished to beneficiaries through means unrelated to the durable medical equipment (DME) benefit, officials said.   The new codes are for clinical services using a mechanically powered device, not DME, including provision of cartridge and dressing(s), topical applications(s), wound assessment, and instructions for ongoing care. Code G0456 applies to total wound(s) surface area less than or equal to 50 sq cm. Code G0457 applies to total wound(s) surface area greater than 50 sq cm.

Delaware Wound Center Names Education Specialist

  Kathy Wright, CWOCN-AP, has been named community education specialist at Nanticoke Wound Care & Hyperbaric Center, Seaford, DE.   Wright’s nursing experience includes nearly 20 years in wound care as well as service with the US Air Force and Nurse Corps. According to Nanticoke officials, Wright was instrumental in opening the organization’s wound care center in 2006, including the opening of the first hyperbaric oxygen therapy service in Delaware. She’s board certified in wound, ostomy, continence nursing (WOCN) and advanced hyperbaric specialties; has served as president of the national WOCN Certification Board (WOCNCB) and on the board for the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists; and was awarded the WOCNCB President’s Award in Advanced Practice in 2005 and the Excellence in Advanced Nursing Practice Award in 2003 from the Delaware Nurses Association/Delaware Organization of Nurse Executives. Additionally, Wright has been published and has lectured extensively on wound care, hyperbaric therapy, and topics in advanced practice nursing, officials said.

‘Cotton Candy’ Product Could Speed Wound Healing

  A St. Louis-based glass manufacturing company has developed a new product that may serve useful in the treatment of chronic wounds, officials said.   DermaFuse, a cotton candy-like material made by Mo-Sci Health Care, significantly speeds up healing time for deep wounds when compared to traditional wound care, according to researchers. Similar to gauze used to pack wounds, DermaFuse is placed in wounds to provide a microstructure that helps the body grow new blood vessels and deliver nutrients that promote healing. But unlike traditional wound care, DermaFuse is absorbed by the body in a few days, accelerating the healing process and lessening scarring.   Preliminary results of a pre-clinical trial reportedly show the product was 98 percent effective at accelerating healing for patients with deep wounds.    “We have seen patients who had serious complications that would likely lead to amputation use DermaFuse and heal very quickly,” said Mo-Sci president Ted Day. “We are seeing a dramatic healing rate, especially in diabetic patients who have poor circulation that often makes healing difficult or nearly impossible.” Research and development of the product has been a collaborative effort among Mo-Sci and Missouri-based Phelps County Regional Medical Center and Missouri University of Science & Technology.

Spotlight On: New Wound Centers

West Georgia Health Opens Wound Clinic

  A ribbon-cutting ceremony was recently held for a new wound clinic that opened at West Georgia Health, LaGrange, GA. The wound care staff includes physicians, nurses, and physical therapists.

Florida Hospitals Collaborate, Open Wound Healing Center

  Florida Hospital Zephyrhills has partnered with infectious diseases physicians at Florida Medical Clinic to open the Florida Hospital Zephyrhills Center for Wound Healing. The new center offers conventional and advanced wound healing treatments, including hyperbaric oxygen therapy and ultrasonic wound debridement, according to officials, and provides a streamlined, multidisciplinary experience for wound care patients, reducing steps from inpatient hospital discharge to outpatient wound treatment, improving the overall continuity of care and patient outcomes. Physicians include Emilio Dominguez, MD; Keith Rosenbach, MD; Pete Tsambiras, MD; Elvis Castillo, MD; and Mazen Abboud, DPM. The team brings more than 50 years of combined wound care experience.    “We are thrilled to partner with the Florida Medical Clinic physician team as this service is integral to the health and healing of our community,” said Doug Duffield, president and CEO of Florida Hospital Zephyrhills. “Florida Medical Clinic is a strong partner, and their infectious disease physician team is highly experienced and, in my opinion, the best in Florida.”   The center opened Dec. 3.

Outpatient Wound Center Opens at St. Mary’s

  St. Mary’s Health Care System, Athens, GA, has opened a new outpatient facility that offers hyperbaric oxygen therapy and other treatments for patients living with chronic wounds. The St. Mary’s Center for Wound Healing provides evidence-based care for wounds that have not responded well to other forms of treatment, according to officials. The center features debridement, infection control, specialized dressings, negative pressure wound therapy, and hyperbaric oxygen therapy.   Many outpatient wound care services that are currently provided at St. Mary’s Hospital will now move to the new center, enhancing services and allowing for continued growth. In addition to more space, the new location provides free parking, front-door access, and onsite registration.

WVUH-East Offers New Wound Care Service

  West Virginia University Hospitals-East has opened its Center for Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine at City Hospital, a facility that offers a comprehensive approach for treating patients with nonhealing sores and wounds.   The wound program is part of a new network of facilities across the country specializing in the comprehensive treatment of chronic sores and wounds, officials said. Physician specialties include general surgery, critical care medicine, infectious disease, orthopedics, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, and podiatry.   A ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house was recently held.

Philadelphia Hospital Honors NP for Wound Prevention

  Officials at Nazareth Hospital, Philadelphia, are lauding the efforts of wound care provider Lori Dwyer, CRNP, NP-C, CWCN, who evaluates and treats wounds for hospital inpatients and outpatients at Nazareth’s Center for Wound Healing and Hyperbarics. A pressure ulcer prevention initiative that Dwyer leads has resulted in wound reductions throughout the facility and has been the subject of recent presentations at industry conferences.   According to hospital administrators, the initiative established more frequent prevalence and incidence studies, data collection for wound prevention and treatment on each nursing unit, and responsive and timely interventions. In 2010, there was a decline in pressure ulcer prevalence by 15% and a decline by 30% of all facility-acquired pressure ulcers — resulting in improved patient outcomes and safety.    “Our evidenced-based wound care continues to make fantastic improvements for our patients’ care,” Dwyer said. “Much of the credit belongs to our staff that embraced the challenge to improve patient outcomes and safety.

Healthpoint Introduces New OASIS Matrix

  Healthpoint Biotherapeutics, Fort Worth, TX, has announced the release of a 5x7 cm size of its OASIS® Ultra Tri-Layer Matrix, a naturally derived extracellular matrix (ECM) material formed from three layers of porcine small intestinal submucosa (SIS). The three-layer construct of ECM is designed to provide increased structure for difficult-to-heal and chronic wounds, officials said.   SIS, the base technology for OASIS Ultra, is among the most widely studied and published biomaterials and is reportedly featured in more than 832 scientific publications.    “OASIS Ultra provides physicians with an easy-to-work-with material that features improved handling to facilitate placement and fixation, as well as increased structure and greater durability to minimize disruption to forming tissue,” said Ally-Khan Somani, PhD, MD, FAAD, assistant professor and director of dermatologic surgery and cutaneous oncology division, division of dermatology, Indiana University School of Medicine. “The new 5x7 size is a welcome option for managing chronic wounds, particularly in outpatient sites of care.”

Smith & Nephew to Acquire Healthpoint Biotherapeutics

  Officials at Smith & Nephew, a global medical technology company that specializes in advanced wound management, have announced an agreement to acquire the assets of Healthpoint Biotherapeutics, Fort Worth, TX, for $782 million. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and is expected some time in December.Founded in 1992, Healthpoint has been focused on biopharmaceutical leadership in acute, chronic, and burn-related wound care over the last several years. Currently marketed products include Collagenase SANTYL® Ointment, OASIS® Wound Matrix, OASIS Ultra Tri-Layer Matrix, and REGRANEX® Gel.

Hearing Loss May Be Associated With Diabetes, Study Finds

  According to a study conducted in Japan, patients who live with diabetes are more than twice as likely as those without the disease to experience hearing impairment.   It’s not the first time researchers have found a link between diabetes and hearing loss, according to Reuters. In 2008, researchers from the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) saw similar patterns in a sample of more than 11,000 people, with those living with diabetes twice as likely to have hearing loss as those without.   High blood sugar levels may lead to hearing loss by damaging blood vessels in the ears, said Chika Horikawa, lead research for the Japan study (for which information from 13 previous studies examining the link between diabetes and hearing loss and published between 1977 and 2011 was collected). Together, the data covered 7,377 diabetics and 12,817 people without the condition. Overall, Horikawa’s team found that diabetics were 2.15 times more likely as people without the disease to have hearing loss, according to the Reuters report. But when the results were broken down by age, people younger than 60 had 2.61 times the risk while people older than 60 had 1.58 times higher risk. However, some experts caution that this type of study does not prove that diabetes is directly responsible for the greater hearing loss rates, Reuters reported.    “It doesn’t definitively answer the question, but it continues to raise an important point that patients might ask about,” said Steven Smith, a diabetes specialist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. Japan researchers noted that future studies that take more factors into account, such as age and noisy environment, are needed to clarify the link between diabetes and hearing loss.    “Furthermore, these results propose that diabetic patients are screened for hearing impairment from (an) earlier age compared with non-diabetics,” Horikawa said.   To submit your industry and facility news to TWC, email jdarrah@hmpcommunications.com or salleman@hmpcommunications.com.