April 15, 2007, Updated September 12, 2012

‘We’re already available through some big distribution sites in the US and through orthopedic shops, but this will open the door wider for us’ – C-Boot’s CEO Amit Ben Dror.Novel Israeli-made therapeutic devices for the treatment of chronic venous insufficiency (CVI), deep vein thrombosis (DVT) prevention, venous ulcers, lymphoedema, and other conditions are soon going to be available throughout the US.

American wound and skin care manufacturer and supplier Derma Sciences, Inc. has obtained a licensing agreement with C-Boot, an Israeli medical biosystems company, for the marketing, sales and distribution rights of C-Boot’s patented devices which also treat conditions that require compression therapy, including the enhancement of blood circulation during recovery from coronary artery bypass graft surgery and orthopedic hip and knee replacements.

Based in Kibbutz Yiron near Israel’s northern border, C-Boot was founded in 2000 as part of the Israeli Chief Scientist’s incubator program, to develop new technologies and specialized products for the management of peripheral vascular disorders.

More than 40 million Americans suffer from lymphatic or venous disorders, which represent an annual economic cost of $9 billion, or 1% – 3% of total US healthcare expenditure. Other than lymphoedema, the bulk of peripheral vascular disorder patients suffer from venous ulcers, CVI, DVT, and varicose veins. None of these chronic disorders is currently curable.

However, by providing light and wearable dynamic compression leggings that significantly improve the healing process, C-Boot’s products empower the patient to self-rehabilitate and to prevent recurrence of disease, according to the company’s founder and CEO Amit Ben Dror.

“It took over three years to develop the first product – called the C-Boot, a standing compression boot,” Ben Dror told ISRAEL21. “It uses the energy of the patient’s own body in order to perform, without the need for electricity or an external power source.”

As patients step, their own kinetic energy starts C-Boot’s intermittent pumping action.
Coordinated with the natural pumping action of the calf muscles and the body’s own
venous valve system, C-Boot’s dynamic compression works to rehabilitate the body’s natural blood return mechanism. C-Boot’s flexible sleeves inflate and deflate to produce a gentle massage that reduces edema, promotes circulation, and hastens the healing process in a highly effective, natural way. The pressure settings of the device are calibrated to meet the specific needs of each individual patient, explained Ben Dror.

C-Boot’s products, which will be marketed by Derma Sciences under the MOBILITY-1 brand, include a lightweight wearable dynamic compression device that periodically inflates and deflates thereby producing segmented and therapeutically significant compression.

Barry J. Wolfenson, VP of marketing and business development at Derma Sciences, explained that the company decided to take on the C-Boot line because of the mobility it provides – thus the brand name.

“Many vascular diseases are treated with intermittent pneumatic compression (IPC) therapy,” he said in a statement. “Until now, IPC therapy has required that the patient remain immobile while hooked to a large pneumatic compressor. Where an ambulatory treatment is available, it has been limited to compression wraps and stockings which have low compliance, are painful, and do not provide optimal therapy.

“MOBILITY-1 takes the concept of IPC therapy much further. Rather than a therapy that is predicated on a patient being immobile, MOBILITY-1 is activated by the patient’s own kinetic energy created from walking around… a key benefit is that MOBILITY-1 will allow the patient to maintain a regular lifestyle, taking therapy wherever they go. That makes this treatment the first and only one of its type in the world.”

The C-Boot line got its start during clinical trials conducted three years ago at the Soroka Medical Center under the supervision of Prof. Gabrial Szendro – the head of its vascular surgery department.

“It showed positive results, and from there it went very quickly,” said Ben Dror. “We went outside for the rest of the trials mostly in the US.”

The C-Boot received FDA approval at the end of 2004, and Ben Dror said that approval is pending for the company’s second product – the C-Tune, a small, portable compressor.

C-Boot devices will be available via prescriptions from vascular surgeons, dermatologists, and sometimes even plastic surgeons, said Ben Dror. He sees the distribution agreement with Derma Sciences as a milestone in the company’s growth that will enable it to widen its distribution.

“We’re already available through some big distribution sites in the US and through orthopedic shops, but this will open the door wider for us,” he said.

Despite the achievement, Ben Dror doesn’t seem too surprised by the company’s achievement of rising in seven years from incubator infancy to producing a vital health care product for American consumers.

“It’s all according to expectations,” he said.

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