Novus Scientific Relaunches TIGR Matrix Surgical Mesh in U.S. Market

Novus Scientific AB has announced the U.S. market relaunch of TIGR Matrix Surgical Mesh through Insightra Medical Inc., a full-line hernia technology supplier.
 
Made from synthetic polymers, TIGR Matrix is a long-term resorbable surgical mesh intended to support and reinforce soft tissue for six months before absorbing completely after three years. Primarily utilized in the United States for hernia surgeries, it has been U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved since 2010 and is available in three sizes. Consisting of dual-stage degradation and full resorption, TIGR Matrix provides strength and flexibility when both are most needed by patients during the healing phase.
 
Novus Scientific first announced its strategic alliance with Insightra Medical in November 2015 to tap into the U.S. company’s national direct sales channel. Distribution plans were put on hold, however, as Insightra was soon acquired and restructured by GPB Capital Holdings LLC, a New York City-based alternative asset management firm with over $1.5 billion in assets under management.¹
 
“We first chose Insightra Medical as our U.S. distributor due to its reputation as a leading supplier of hernia and soft tissue repair technology. Now, with GBP Capital’s backing, Insightra is an even stronger partner for us, and we are confident TIGR Matrix will soon have the brand recognition and widespread use in the U.S. that it possesses around the world,” said Thomas Engström, CEO of Novus Scientific.
 
“Novus Scientific and Insightra Medical are both innovators in the hernia market with a focus on reduced pain and patient trauma, which sets both companies apart from the classical hernia mesh manufacturers. GPB Capital sees enormous growth potential in the U.S. for TIGR Matrix, and the companies’ synergies make Insightra Medical and Novus perfect partners for such a strategic alliance,” said Evan Myrianthopoulos, managing partner of GPB Capital responsible for the firm’s Debt Investments, and chairman of Insightra Medical.
 
TIGR Matrix’s resorbable mesh has been used on-lay to reinforce midline laparotomy closures in order to avoid wound dehiscence in a study published in Frontiers in Surgery.² Many surgeons believe using a permanent material causes unnecessary risk of long-term, mesh-related complications, like discomfort and chronic pain.

“Standard hernia meshes and plugs are often associated with numerous complications, most of all chronic pain, which is why Insightra is focused on becoming a premium provider of hernia repair solutions like TIGR Matrix,” explained Kai Trompeter, CEO of Insightra Medical.
 
Data presented by Dr. Bruce Ramshaw,³ chair of the Department of Surgery at the University of Tennessee Graduate School of Medicine in Knoxville, in 2016 showed a cost savings of $8,744 per patient when surgeries used TIGR Matrix compared to the use of biologic mesh. “By replacing the biologic meshes we used for Abdominal Wall Reconstruction, we saw significant savings for the hospital, and when combined with other process improvement ideas, we saw better outcomes,” states Ramshaw, who has used TIGR Matrix for his surgeries since 2011.

Insightra Medical Inc. designs, develops and markets medical devices serving the hernia and general surgery market.
 
Novus Scientific AB, Uppsala, Sweden, develops, manufactures and markets resorbable implants that help the body’s own healing.

References
1. Which is different and distinct from GPB Capital’s “Regulatory AUM.”
2. Front Surg. 2016; 3:28. Published online 2016 May 18. doi: 10.3389/fsurg.2016.00028
3. “Value-Based Clinical Quality Improvement (CQI) for Patients Undergoing Abdominal Wall Reconstruction,” SURGICAL TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL XXVI