LifeNet Health announced the expantion of its portfolio with the acquisition of Bioventus' wound care division.

Financial terms of the acqusition were not disclosed. 

"Non-healing wounds are a modern health care crisis," LifeNet Health President and CEO Rony Thomas said in a company news release. "Our goal is to continue reimagining wound care through increased access to best-in-class wound care products that are both clinically effective and affordable, helping patients recover and avoid amputation and poor health outcomes."

According to LifeNet, chronic wounds affect over 8 million Americans at an estimated cost of at least $28 billion.[1] Examples include diabetic foot ulcers, surgical wounds, pressure ulcers, burns, and wounds following trauma. The acquisition will enable LifeNet Health to help more of these patients through expanded clinical use of its existing and new wound care products. One example is TheraSkin, a limb-saving human-to-human allograft that has supported healing in more than 100,000 patients with chronic wounds. TheraSkin's clinical and cost-effectiveness is supported by extensive peer-reviewed published clinical evidence including most recently a randomized clinical trial that shows TheraSkin significantly improves wound healing by supporting wound closure at a faster rate than the standard of care.[2]

LifeNet Health has been producing TheraSkin since 2010, but Bioventus has served as the distribution channel. With the acquisition, LifeNet Health's team is set to become even more impactful, as it gains 90 Bioventus employees. "The new members of our wound care team are talented professionals, and we know they will be a strong match for our culture, which is devoted to performing at the highest level for each other and for the patients and physicians we serve," Mr. Thomas said.

TheraSkin and two other products from the company–Theragenesis and SonicOne–will strengthen LifeNet Health's portfolio of skin tissue biologics and regenerative medicine products, including Dermacell AWM and Matrion. 

References

1. Samuel R. Nussbaum, Marissa J. Carter, Caroline E. Fife, Joan DaVanzo, Randall Haught, Marcia Nusgart, Donna Cartwright. An Economic Evaluation of the Impact, Cost, and Medicare Policy Implications of Chronic Nonhealing Wounds. Value in Health, Volume 21, Issue 1, 2018. ISSN 1098-3015. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jval.2017.07.007.
2. Armstrong DG, Galiano RD, Orgill DP, Glat PM, Carter MJ, DiDomenico LA, Reyzelman AM, Zelen CM. Multi-centre prospective randomized controlled clinical trial to evaluate a bioactive split thickness skin allograft versus standard of care in the treatment of diabetic foot ulcers. Int Wound J. 2022 Jan 26. doi: 10.1111/iwj.13759. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 35080127.