Urgo Medical: innovation as part of its DNA. URGO Group invests €25 million a year in R&D, in particular on medical technologies related to chronic wound healing.

"The prestigious Prix Galien rewards six years of collective hard work. Our R&D teams have spared no effort in developing the innovative UrgoStart^® wound dressing," said a beaming Hervé Le Lous, Chairman of URGO Group. "Our goal is to enable many more people to heal much faster, which will be a major benefit for patients, doctors and nurses, and society as a whole."

UrgoStart^® : a breakthrough in diabetic foot wound healing 

With close to 425 million people affected worldwide, diabetes has become an epidemic that is growing steadily ^[1]. Nearly one out of every four patients with diabetes will suffer from  a diabetic foot ulcer at least once in their lifetime^[2].

Such wounds are also a major risk of infection which can lead to amputation and even death.

With one amputation carried out every 20 seconds, diabetes is the world's leading cause of amputation^[2]. In light of this finding, Urgo Medical launched the Explorer clinical study^[3] in France, Spain, Italy, Germany and the UK, with the  outcomes published in March 2018 in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology. The results demonstrated the efficacy of UrgoStart^® which led to a 60% increase in wound closure compared with standard care and reduced wound closure time by 60 days from an average period of 180 days.

The first dressing to be deemed a local treatment, UrgoStart^® is a French innovation recognized at the international level and now honoured by the Prix Galien.

URGO Group: https://www.urgo-group.com/

Prix Galien France: https://www.prixgalien.fr/

1. International Diabetes Federation. IDF Diabetes atlas. 8th ed. 2017. Brussels: International, International Diabetes Federation https://www.idf.org/e-library/epidemiology-research/diabestes-atlas.html

2. Whiting, D. R., Guariguata, L., Weil, C., and Shax, J. 23011. "IDF Diabetes Atlas: Global Estimates of the Prevalence of Diabetes for 2011 and 2030." Diabetes Res. Clin. Pract. 94 (3):311-21

3. Michael Edmonds, José Luis Lázaro-Martínez, Jesus Manuel Alfayate-García, Jacques Martini, Jean-Michel Petit, Gerry Rayman, Ralf Lobmann, Luigi Uccioli, Anne Sauvadet, Serge Bohbot, Jean-Charles Kerihuel, Alberto Piaggesi. Sucrose octasulfate dressing versus control dressing in patients with neuroischaemic diabetic foot ulcers (Explorer): an international, multicentre, double-blind, randomised, controlled trial. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol 2018;6 (3) :186-196

BCW: Veronique Machuette – +33(0)1-56-03-12-38, veronique.machuette@bm.com; Urgo Medical: Audrey Dokier – +33(0)1 56-62-40-18, a.dokier@fr.urgo.com