MADISON
– The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation has invested $150,000 in Isomark
LLC, funding that will be used by the Madison-based firm to help support a
110-patient study of the company’s non-invasive “Canary” breath analyzer. The
device is intended to provide early warnings of potentially deadly patient infections.
The
WARF investment more than doubles $130,000 in private money raised by Isomark
in recent months as part of its latest $750,000 funding round. The round will
be used to support the study, which will take place at the UW Hospital and
Clinics.
“Isomark
is a ready example of technology developed at the UW-Madison with potential for
saving and improving lives worldwide,” said Michael Falk, general counsel for
WARF. “Our investment will help move the company to its next stage and to
gather much-needed clinical data, which we expect will build upon investor and
customer interest in the company.”
A
previous study tracked 17 mechanically ventilated pediatric patients and differentiated
between those who were healthy and those who were infected. It demonstrated a
link between breath carbon isotope “delta values” and inflammatory acute phase
response. The breath delta value can be thought of as “the temperature of the
immune system,” and provides a biomarker for infections at the earliest
moments.
That
relationship may be critical in the early diagnosis of Systemic Inflammatory
Response Syndrome. The onset of SIRS, which occurs in 82 percent of patients
admitted to pediatric intensive care units, can lead to sepsis.
Sepsis,
severe sepsis and septic shock are types of systemic infections caused by a
micro-organism, such as bacteria or viruses, and may lead to organ dysfunction
and death. Sepsis ranks as the most common cause of death of infants and
children in the world.
“We’re
excited to continue to build investor support for Isomark and to continue work
on the milestones that we believe will allow ‘Canary’ to be safely and
efficiently introduced to the market,” said Joe Kremer, CEO of Isomark.
The
earlier pediatric study was published by the Royal Academy of Chemistry. It
noted “the early detection of bacterial sepsis followed by immediate
intervention is critical for successful outcomes to patient care. Current
clinical methods are often unreliable in detecting early bacterial sepsis;
accordingly, there is great interest in identifying laboratory methods for
early detection of sepsis.”
In
the United States alone, there were more than 47,000 cases of severe sepsis in
children aged 19 or younger in 1999. Hospital mortality rate for those children
was estimated at 9 percent for that year. The estimated annual total costs were
$2.3 billion for pediatric patients in the United States alone for that year.
Overall,
hospital-acquired infections cost the U.S. healthcare between $35 billion and
$88 billion per year. In 2008, Medicare stopped reimbursing for the additional
costs related to treating hospital-acquired infections in adults.
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