Viromed Medical AG, a medical technology company and pioneer in cold plasma technology, has announced the successful completion of a multi-year research study on the application of cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) in the lung. The study data will now be submitted for publication in a renowned scientific journal.
The study focused on ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), one of the most critical challenges in modern intensive care medicine. Results confirm the potential of cold plasma technology as a physical, non-pharmacological treatment option for severe infectious lung diseases. The data show a clearly defined therapeutic safety window and a complete reduction of pathogenic germs in lung epithelial models.
An important component was the ex vivo validation on vital lungs in collaboration with Saarland University and Hannover Medical School. The isolated, ventilation- and perfusion-capable lung model used realistically reflects key physiological characteristics of the human lung and enables reproducible investigations on vital organ tissue.
Uwe Perbandt, Member of the Management Board of Viromed Medical AG, stated: “By successfully completing this study, we have reached a point of outstanding importance for Viromed and for modern pneumology. The data confirm the potential of our cold plasma technology in one of the most sensitive organ systems of the human body. It is particularly encouraging that we are no longer speaking only about preclinical evidence, but are already seeing first successful applications in patients in a university clinical setting.”
On the basis of the study results, Viromed’s technology has already been used in a university setting in a severe pulmonary individual case in a human patient. Following approval by the responsible ethics committee, a university hospital with a department specializing in lung and transplantation medicine treated a patient in connection with a lung transplant and massive complications. The use of cold plasma was very successful. According to the assessment of the treating physicians, the observed positive clinical course was exceptional. The hospital plans to publish the case in the near term. Further severely ill patients with a high risk of a fatal outcome are undergoing treatment.
Viromed sees clear indications that cold plasma technology will fundamentally change pneumology. While classical pharmacological therapies are increasingly limited by the development of resistance, cold plasma as a physical mode of action opens up a new therapeutic dimension, also regarding prevention of severe pulmonary infections.
Looking ahead, further applications in intensive care medicine are moving into clinical research, such as intracardiac use in operations for bacterial endocarditis before implantation of a valve prosthesis, or application in the thorax in cases of bacterial pleural empyema.
More information is available at www.viromed-medical-ag.de.
