BioMimetic Therapeutics, Inc. (BioMimetic Therapeutics), a biotech company, has received approval from Health Canada to begin the marketing of its orthopedic product, Augment Bone Graft, as an alternative to the use of autograft in midfoot, hindfoot and ankle fusion indications in Canada.
“After rigorous pre-clinical and clinical evaluation of the product, BioMimetic is now ready to introduce this novel, implantable biologic to the marketplace,” commented Dr. Samuel E. Lynch, president and chief executive officer of BioMimetic. “In the Canadian clinical study, we observed 90% clinical success without the morbidity and extra operating room time required to harvest autograft. We are proud to offer this safe and effective product to Canadian surgeons, who will now be able to offer their patients an alternative to the previous method of cutting bone out of one site of their body and transplanting it to another site.”
The company claims that the Augment is a completely synthetic grafting system for bone regeneration and is composed of a purified recombinant growth factor, recombinant human platelet derived growth factor (rhPDGF-BB), and a synthetic calcium phosphate matrix, beta-tricalcium phosphate (ß-TCP). The combination of the two components ofAugment is key to the overall effectiveness of the product. The rhPDGF-BB provides the biological stimulus for tissue repair by stimulating the recruitment and proliferation of new bone forming cells and blood vessels, while the ß-TCP provides the framework or scaffold for new bone growth to occur.
Augment is the company’s second product to receive marketing approval in Canada. GEM 21S, a grafting material for bone and periodontal regeneration, was approved for use by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Health Canada in 2005 and 2006, respectively. Augment and GEM 21S are both based on the company’s platform regenerative technology.