The earliest known use of surgical sutures dates back to 3000 BC in ancient Egypt. Since then humans have experimented with sutures made from flax, cotton, hair, tendons, silk and anything vaguely thread-like.

Taking surgical suturing to the next level is Orthocell (ASX: OCC), a Western Australian based company developing next-gen regenerative medicine products.

The Company has developed CelGro®, a novel collagen medical device platform designed for soft tissue regeneration. CelGro® can be applied in surgical settings, removing the need for sutures in the repair of soft tissue.

Suture-less repair of soft tissue can potentially improve patient outcomes by reducing the risk of additional trauma to soft tissue caused by stitches as well as reducing surgery time thereby increasing efficiency in the operating theatre.

The tech has been clinically validated in numerous studies comparing CelGro® to direct suture methods for the repair of damaged peripheral nerves. These sorts of injuries often require reconstructive surgery and stitches to reconnect the nerve ends. Studies have shown that CelGro® facilitated tension-less repair outperforms traditional suture methods resulting in superior nerve repair and restoration of muscle function. CelGro® also mitigated scarring around the injury site and facilitated a 30% increase in transmission of electrical impulses through the nerve.

Aware of their competitive advantage to traditional surgical techniques, Orthocell are keen to protect their intellectual property. The Company has added to their extensive collection of patents with new patents granted for CelGro® as a method of suture-less repair of soft tissue in Canada and Hong Kong. The Company already holds patents for this indication in Australia, New Zealand, China and Japan.

Orthocell Managing Director, Paul Anderson said: “These patents are an important addition to our global intellectual property portfolio, further strengthening our position in regenerative medicine product development and novel surgical techniques for soft tissue repair. Suture-less or tensionless repair is of particular importance in the optimal repair of damaged nerves and is a key part of the repair process undertaken in the CelGro® nerve regeneration clinical study. This comes at a perfect time for the Company as we move our exciting pipeline products in nerve, tendon and ligament repair through the registration process in the US, EU and AUS.”

The Company is progressing their tech through the necessary steps towards FDA approval with the help of Experien Group’s US regulatory advisory expertise. The Company is hopeful that the tech will be considered for expedited programs, pushing CelGro® further along the approval process.