Sunday, April 18, 2010

Medafor Abandons Efforts to Deny Shareholder Status to CryoLife CEO

In November 2009, Medafor, Inc. filed a lawsuit against Mr. Anderson and Mr. Richard Zerban, the former CEO of Medafor, regarding Mr. Zerban's sale to Mr. Anderson of 1,000 shares of Medafor stock (the "Transaction"). Mr. Anderson asserted a counterclaim against Medafor and third party claims against Mr. Gary Shope, Medafor's CEO, and Mr. Gavin Thomson, Medafor's CFO, in the lawsuit regarding the Transaction.

Medafor has agreed to dismiss with prejudice all of its claims against Mr. Anderson and Mr. Zerban in the Lawsuit and has agreed to register the 1,000 shares in Mr. Anderson's name effective as of May 13, 2009. Medafor also retracts the allegations it has made on its website and elsewhere that the Transaction was wrongful.

Mr. Anderson, in turn, has agreed to dismiss with prejudice all of his counterclaims against Medafor and all of his third-party claims against Mr. Shope and Mr. Thomson.

As part of the dismissal, both parties withdraw the allegations they have made against one another in the Lawsuit. No party admits or acknowledges liability or wrongdoing in this matter. The Lawsuit was settled to the Parties' mutual satisfaction.

CryoLife was not a party to the lawsuit.

Comparison between TachoComb and TachoSil

TachoComb has frequently been used for the treatment of both venous and arterial bleeding. However, anaphylactic reactions have been reported after repeated use of hemostatic agents containing aprotinin such as TachoComb. Because aprotinin is also associated with risk of renal failure, manufacturing of a new product--TachoSil--which lacks aprotinin seems a logic evolvement. Furthermore, thrombin on the TachoSil material has been changed from bovine in TachoComb to human origin. These changes in the biochemical composition could lead to changes in the hemostatic performance. Therefore, we aimed to disclose any difference in hemostatic efficacy of the two products. METHODS: Twelve 70-kg pigs had controlled insults to the thoracic aorta with and without heparin administration. The iatrogenic lesion was randomly covered with either TachoComb or TachoSil and the time to hemostasis was measured. RESULTS: Time to hemostasis when using TachoSil compared with TachoComb was increased 14% (-13% to 48%) with heparin and 10% (-26% to 66%) without heparin (mean +/- 95% confidence interval; p > 0.05 in both). Time to hemostasis with heparin administration increased significantly in both treatments: TachoComb 80% (26%-156%) (p = 0.001) and TachoSil 75% (18%-158%) (p = 0.005). CONCLUSION: We found neither statistical nor clinical evidence that TachoComb should have better hemostatic properties than does TachoSil in arterial bleeding. Both TachoSil and TachoComb can be used with heparin administration, but significant prolongation of the time to hemostasis is to be expected for both products. TachoSil should be preferred to TachoComb due to the potential lower risk of side effects when using the former.

World Hemophilia Day


On World Hemophilia Day 2010, April 17, meet the many faces of bleeding disorders - united to achieve Treatment for All. Each year hemophilia organizations around the world celebrate World Hemophilia Day, increasing awareness of hemophilia and other bleeding disorders.

The World Federation of Hemophilia (WFH) will launch “The Many Faces of Bleeding Disorders” video podcast on World Hemophilia Day. This video podcast celebrates the whole bleeding disorders community – people with hemophilia and symptomatic carriers, males and females with von Willebrand disease, as well as rarer factor deficiencies, and inherited platelet disorders. It features the impact of these conditions through global patient perspectives and includes a call-to-action for access and improved patient standard of care.

“The goal of the World Federation of Hemophilia is that, one day, treatment will be available for all those with inherited bleeding disorders, regardless of where they live,” said Mark Skinner, WFH president. “Our vision of Treatment for All means expanding services beyond hemophilia.”


Visit www.wfh.org/whd :
for more information about World Hemophilia Day. The World Hemophilia Day website is supported by Bayer, Baxter, and Novo Nordisk. View “The Many Faces of Bleeding Disorders” video podcast, made possible with funding from Baxter Healthcare Corporation, at www.wfh.org/whd : .