ExThera, Fresenius Forge Seraph 100 Distribution Pact for Mexico

ExThera Medical and Fresenius Medical Care are expanding the distribution of ExThera’s Seraph 100 Microbind Affinity Blood Filter to Latin America.

The product is now available in Mexico.

The expansion follow’s last year’s distribution agreement (between both companies) for the Seraph 100 in certain European countries. The Seraph 100 is used in intensive care medicine for the reduction of pathogens in the blood and can be operated with Fresenius Medical Care acute dialysis machines. Similar to a dialysis procedure, the blood is purified through extracorporeal equipment, but Seraph 100 uniquely captures circulating pathogens from the bloodstream; adsorbed pathogens include a myriad of infectious agents, including SARS-CoV-2, MRSA and even super-resistant bacteria.
 
“ExThera’s growing partnership with Fresenius Medical Care allows more critically ill patients access to a treatment for broad pathogen-oriented shock, including COVID-19, at a crucial time when cases are spiking and hospitals are overwhelmed,” said Robert Ward, ExThera Medical chairman and CEO.

As a patient’s blood flows through the Seraph 100 filter, it passes over beads with receptors that mimic the receptors on human cells that pathogens target when they invade the body. Harmful substances are quickly captured and adsorbed onto the surface of the beads and are thereby subtracted from the bloodstream. Seraph adds nothing to the bloodstream. It targets the pathogens that cause the infection, while it also binds and removes harmful substances generated by the pathogen and by the body’s response to the infection. Seraph’s adsorption media (the beads) constitute a flexible platform that uses immobilized (chemically bonded) heparin for its well-established blood compatibility and its unique ability to bind bacteria, viruses, fungi, and important sepsis mediators reported to contribute to organ failure during sepsis.
 
“We need every tool available in Mexico as new variants will no doubt continue to put a burden on hospitals working tirelessly to deliver life-saving care to patients with COVID-19,” said Alfredo Merino, president of Fresenius Medical Care Mexico. “As experts in extracorporeal therapy, we are excited to help deliver this new filter to improve treatment for people impacted by a range of bacterial and viral infections.”
 
The Seraph 100 has been used to treat more than 800 COVID-19 patients, in over 70 hospitals, globally. Early results have demonstrated reduced mortality and reduced ICU length of stay in severe/critically ill COVID-19 patients in preliminary clinical studies.^1,2 The device received European CE mark in 2019 for the for the reduction of bloodstream pathogens, and was granted Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2020 for use in patients with COVID-19 admitted to the ICU with confirmed or imminent respiratory failure.
 
Fresenius Medical Care is a global provider of products and services for individuals with renal diseases of which around 3.7 million patients worldwide regularly undergo dialysis treatment. Through its network of 4,151 dialysis clinics, Fresenius Medical Care provides dialysis treatments for approximately 345,000 patients around the globe. Fresenius Medical Care also provides dialysis products such as dialysis machines or dialyzers. Along with its core business, the Renal Care Continuum, the company focuses on expanding in complementary areas and in the field of critical care. 
 
ExThera Medical Corporation develops and commercializes extracorporeal blood filtration devices, including the Seraph 100 Microbind Affinity Blood Filter for removing pathogens from the bloodstream. Seraph can be used in hospitals, clinics, or field hospitals to address nosocomial and community-acquired infections as well as those caused by battlefield wounds and pandemics. ExThera Medical’s extracorporeal products have demonstrated life-saving capabilities in a wide range of critically ill patients suffering from sepsis and other severe infections. 
 
References 
¹ Chitty et al, A Multicenter Evaluation of Blood Purification with Seraph 100 Microbind Affinity Blood Filter for the Treatment of Severe COVID-19: A Preliminary Report, (2021)
² Schmidt et al, Interim-analysis of the COSA (COVID-19 patients treated with the Seraph® 100 Microbind® Affinity filter) registry, NDT, 2021; gfab347