User:BexarTech/Kinetic Concepts draft

Kinetic Concepts, Inc. (nyse: KCI), (KCI) is an American based multinational medical technology company with headquarters in San Antonio, Texas. The company develops and markets a range of high-technology therapies, including therapeutic beds, wound care and tissue regeneration technology. KCI produced the first product developed specifically for negative pressure wound therapy, V.A.C. Therapy. the company employs 6,800 people and markets its products in more than 20 countries.

Operations
KCI is composed of three business units: Active Healing Solutions, LifeCell and Therapeutic Support Systems, that operate in the wound care, regenerative medicine and therapeutic support systems markets. The largest of these business units is the KCI Active Healing Solutions division which markets wound care products that deliver negative pressure to promote wound healing and/or address a variety of surgical challenges. In particular, KCI specializes in vacuum-assisted closure (V.A.C.) technology. The company develops and supplies a range of products for use in wound healing under the brand V.A.C. Therapy. The V.A.C. Therapy products are for use in treating a wide range of wounds including traumatic wounds, pressure ulcers, chronic wounds and diabetic ulcers. The therapeutic support systems developed and supplied by KCI are largely for the treatment and prevention of complications associated with patient immobility. These include support surfaces for hospital beds and home patients designed to address pulmonary complications in immobile patients. KCI also develops specialty beds for use in hospitals or in long-term care facilities. The latest addition to KCI's business is regenerative medicine, into which the company expanded in 2008. Through subsidiary company LifeCell Corporation, KCI develops and supplies tissue-based products. These include tissue-based treatments used in surgical procedures to repair soft-tissue.

KCI products are used in hospitals, long-term care facilities and also by the US military. For Active Healing Solutions and Therapeutic Support Systems' products, KCI's development process includes what it calls Highly Accelerated Life Testing. This testing is carried out by using high levels of shaking and vibration, among other techniques, in order to ensure the products are durable. In addition, KCI carries out training in the use of V.A.C. Therapy for almost 50,000 clinicians each year.

Corporate history
KCI was founded in 1976 in San Antonio, Texas by Dr. Jim Leininger, an emergency room physician who wanted to help prevent the pulmonary complications associated with immobility. In time the company developed or acquired a line of therapeutic specialty beds, surfaces and related devices including, the TriaDyne Critical Care Therapy System. This was introduced in 1995 as a specialty bed for acute care patients with pulmonary complications. Initially KCI's product development focused on therapeutic beds and surfaces, however, in the mid-1990s the company introduced V.A.C. Therapy, the first commercial negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) technology. KCI expanded into regenerative medicine in 2008 when the company purchased LifeCell Corporation, a developer of tissue regeneration products.

Company financial information
From the founding of the company in 1976 to 1988, the revenue of KCI grew to 153.2 million. The growth in revenue allowed KCI to go public and trade on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in 1988. KCI stock was traded on the NYSE until 1997, when the company went private. In February of 2004, KCI became a publicly listed company for the second time and is since listed on the NYSE under the ticker symbol KCI. By the late 2000s the company's revenue was over $1 billion and reported an increase of 17 percent in 2007 to $1.61 billion. Revenue for 2008 was $1.88 billion, increasing to $1.99 billion in 2009 and in 2010 increased to $2.02 billion.

Negative pressure wound therapy
KCI first marketed its V.A.C. Therapy System in 1995. The V.A.C. Therapy System comprises a foam dressing placed into the wound, followed by covering the wound with a transparent dressing; tubing then connects the dressing to a vacuum pump that applies negative pressure, sealing the wound. Studies published in 1997 demonstrated the use of V.A.C. Therapy in wound treatment and found that V.A.C. Therapy led to increased formation of granulation tissue. The V.A.C. Therapy System is intended to help promote wound healing; clinical studies have shown that it has the potential to decrease length of stay and incidence of complications, compared to standard of care wound therapy, through its unique mechanisms of action. In the US KCI V.A.C. Therapy products have been given reimbursement approval under Medicare and Medicaid, and are also covered by many private insurers. Since the launch of the first V.A.C. Therapy product in 1995, KCI has developed a range of V.A.C. Therapy products including specialized dressings and portable units such as the V.A.C. Via Therapy System. KCI trains nearly 50,000 clinicians per year to use the V.A.C. Therapy products for wound treatment.

KCI V.A.C. Therapy units may be used in the home, as well as in acute care settings. In 2010, the FDA launched a Medical Device Home Use Initiative, intended to improve the safety of medical devices used by patients at home or in care facilities. KCI has stated that it supports this initiative and plans to improve home use safety. KCI V.A.C. Therapy products for use in the home have "undergone extensive scrutiny" to ensure their safety and appropriateness for use by patients and caregivers who may not have clinical backgrounds, according to Mike Genau, global president of KCI's 'Active Healing Solutions' division. In addition, KCI has provided a telephone support line that patients can call to speak to technical representatives or clinicians 24 hours a day.

One of KCI's NPWT products, the V.A.C. Freedom Therapy System was awarded with the US Army and US Air Force's Joint Airworthiness Certification in December 2006, and is the only NPWT product used in military aeromedical evacuation. The US military also uses V.A.C. Therapy products for wound treatment in its military hospitals and in combat zones.

LifeCell Corporation
LifeCell Corporation, a regenerative medicine company, has developed a range of tissue-based products for use in reconstructive surgery and tissue-regeneration and is one of the leading providers of biological products used in soft-tissue repair. Its products include a reconstructive tissue matrix called Strattice Reconstructive Tissue Matrix, intended for use in surgical procedures including plastic reconstructive surgery and abdominal wall reconstruction, and AlloDerm Regenerative Tissue Matrix, a regenerative tissue product used in surgical procedures for challenging hernia repair, breast reconstruction post mastectomy and for periodontal procedures.

KCI made an agreement in April 2008 to purchase LifeCell in a non-hostile transaction for 1.7 billion. LifeCell's CEO is Lisa Colleran, who took on the role in August 2008 following the acquisition by KCI.