Frederick-based Biotech company lands Florida deal

Jan. 14, 2007
By JOSEPH M. DELEON News-Post Staff
jdeleon@fredericknewspost.com

   FREDERICK — Patients recovering from cosmetic eyelid surgery sometimes use a foam patch to recover faster and get relief from swelling and bruising.
     Soon, people suffering from other ailments, such as ankle sprains, could benefit too.
     A version of the ActiPatch made for ankle problems is going through clinical trials to determine if it can be sold over the counter in the United States. The patch is a drug-free, anti-inflammatory appliqué that helps reduce soft tissue pain and swelling.
     The results of the trials, conducted at the Lahey Clinic in Burlington, Mass., are expected in February and will then be presented to the Food and Drug Administration, said Andy Whelan, CEO of Frederick-based Bio-Electronics Corp., which makes the patch.
     Last week, BioElectronics reached a distribution agreement with Molecular Ionics LLC, of Wesley Chapel, Fla.
     Molecular Ionics, a provider of wound-care products and services, will distribute the patch to medical professionals in Florida's northwest counties. The agree ment means eight U.S. companies now distribute the patch.
     Through Sept. 30, 2006, Bio-Electronics had a cumulative operating loss of about $5.3 million and negative working capital of about $1.15 million, according to documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. BioElectrioncs' shares closed at 11 cents Friday on the Over the Counter Bulletin Board, down 27 cents from a year ago.
     The patch is poised for worldwide distribution as the company continues to market to customers in western Europe and Canada, Mr. Whelan said. Two new Canadian distribution deals, one to retailers and another to medical professionals, are pending. Mr. Whelan expects an agreement by the end of January.
     BioElectronics closed a deal in November that will distribute the patch in the Middle East and a deal last month for distribution in South Korea.
     “We're working to get distribution in western Europe,” Mr. Whelan said. “We should have one there by early next month.”
     The ActiPatch is BioElectronics' flagship product; it uses the body's own bioelectrical energy to accelerate healing. The patch uses pulsed electromagnetic field therapy in a flexible foam case that can be contoured to fit any part of the body.
     Physical therapists, chiropractors and orthopedic surgeons have used pulsed electromagnetic therapy for decades, Mr. Whelan said. It works by sending a lowpowered electric signal into damaged tissue.
     When the body is injured, its natural response is to swell to help fight infection. The expanding flesh pushes individual cells away from each other, stopping cellular communication and helping prevent the spread of infection.
     “That's good for your standard scratches and bumps, but for surgical wounds, that inflammation can do more harm than good,” Mr. Whelan said. “When swelling pushes healthy cells away from each other, they can't work efficiently.”
     The electric pulses from the patch restore cell communication, bypassing the inflammation phase of recovery and enabling cells to move directly into tissue repair mode.
     The length of the therapy is controlled with a battery-operated microchip inside the patch that sends continuous electric pulses to help heal damaged tissue.
     “The end product is how fast a patient recovers from a surgery,” Mr. Whelan said. “It's a Band-Aid that heals.”