AcryMed, Inc. Receives Frost & Sullivan Product Innovation Award for Its Innovative SilvaGard Coating

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- Frost & Sullivan's recent analysis of the coatings markets selected AcryMed, Inc. as the recipient of the 2005 Product Innovation of the Year Award for its innovative antimicrobial treatment process, SilvaGard. This process uses a nano particle silver treatment that can provide antimicrobial benefits to almost any medical device.

"AcryMed, Inc.'s SilvaGard antimicrobial treatment provides microbial protection to patients by restricting the formation of biofilm, which helps in halting the transmission of infection from the devices to patients," says Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst Rajesh Varadarajan. "SilvaGard offers surface treatment solutions without hampering the physical characteristics of the device on which it is coated. AcryMed recently announced clearance from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for SilvaGard's use in medical devices."

AcryMed, Inc. uses a solution process to apply the silver nano particles to the surfaces of medical devices. SilvaGard can treat even difficult to reach places of medical devices where antimicrobial protection is essential. For instance, the coating is designed to be able to deposit the silver particles even on the inner side of the catheter element.    "SilvaGard even allows the masking of certain parts that do not require surface treatment or of places where the manufacturer chooses not to provide antimicrobial protection," explains Varadarajan. "The flexibility offered by SilvaGard in coating medical products depending on the specification of manufacturers is a key differentiating factor for this innovative nano particle silver treatment technology."

The coating process is efficient as the process operates at a low temperature, which is ideal for treating large batches of materials with lower melting points. In addition, the R&D capability at the disposal of AcryMed, Inc. plays a pivotal role when it enters into a partnership agreement with major medical device manufacturers. The company positions itself as a partnering organization with full laboratory testing capabilities (microbial, biological, and chemical) that are likely to benefit medical manufacturers in penetrating the antimicrobial device markets.

SilvaGard offers a uniform coating of medical device surfaces which is designed to eliminates biofilm formation. Other benefits of SilvaGard are that it is long lasting and cost-effective for large-volume applications. All these features make AcryMed, Inc. the recipient of the 2005 Frost & Sullivan Award for Product Innovation of the Year for the U.S. antimicrobial coatings markets. Each year, this Award is presented to a company that has demonstrated excellence in new products and technologies within its industry. The recipient company has shown innovation by launching a broad line of emerging products and technologies.

Source: Frost & Sullivan