Clinical Evaluation of a Novel Incisional NPWT System

A Clinical Evaluation of a Novel, Single-Use, Negative Pressure Wound Therapy (NPWT) System for the Management of Closed Surgical Wounds

A study of the first clinical use in humans of a novel NPWT system (npSIMS) to assess the suitability, safety and efficacy of the system for the management of closed surgical wounds

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Surgical Wound
• Intervention / Treatment: Device: npSIMS

Detailed Description

The purpose of this investigation is to test the functionality of a novel, non-electric NPWT device: npSIMS (negative pressure Surgical Incision Management System) from Aatru Medical LLC (Ohio, USA) which uses an exothermic chemical process to extract the oxygen from the air contained within the dressing (air contains 21% O2) and hence bring and maintain the system to between -160 and -80 mmHg below atmospheric pressure (760 mmHg). The dressing and the chemical reaction pump module can be manufactured for significantly less than the cost of electromechanical NPWT systems and can be profitably marketed at a discount to the cost of existing commercial devices. The Aatru Medical NPWT system could transform the economics and increase the availability of this therapy across the world.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 23
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• New Zealand
  • Auckland, New Zealand
    • Middlemore Clinical Trials

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Participant is male or female ≥ 18 years of age 2. Participant will undergo an elective sternotomy, thoracotomy, caesarean section (C-section) or skin surgery incision with closure by sutures or staples 3. Participant will undergo a surgical procedure resulting in a closed approximately linear incision between 5 cm and 13 cm in length inclusive so that the npSIMS dressing covers the wound with a minimum of 1 cm overlap at each end 4. Participant is willing and able to take part in the study and provide written informed consent.

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Exclusion Criteria:

1. Participants will undergo post-surgical radiotherapy or chemotherapy
2. Participants who, in the opinion of the Investigator, have an existing health condition that would compromise their participation and follow-up in this study
3. Participant will undergo emergency surgery
4. Participant is sensitive to or known to have allergies to silicone/acrylic adhesives
5. Participant has malignancy in the wound bed or margins of the wound
6. Participant has wound with confirmed and untreated osteomyelitis
7. Participant has wound with non-enteric and unexplored fistulas
8. Participant has wound with necrotic tissue with eschar present
9. Participant has exposed arteries, veins, nerves or organs
10. Participant has exposed anastomotic sites

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: N/A
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: npSIMS; Group will receive the Aatru Medical npSIMS device	Device: npSIMS; incisional NPWT; Other Names: negative pressure Surgical Incision Management system

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Mean (median) number of days of negative pressure delivered to the incision up to day 7	To assess the maintenance and reliability with which negative pressure is delivered for the 7-day NPWT period.	7 days

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Mean (median) clinician assessment of exudate management on 5-point Numerical Rating Score (NRS) at day 7 ±2 and at any npSIMS replacement.	5 is excellent exudate management; 4 is good; 3 is adequate; 2 is poor; 1 is inadequate	7 Days
Mean (median) days wear time of the adhesive dressing up to day 7	To assess the wear time of the adhesive dressing	7 days
Mean (median) days longevity of the chemical vacuum source up to day 7	To assess the longevity of the chemical vacuum source	7 Days
Presence or absence of blisters on day 7 ±2	Condition of the peri wound skin	7 days
Mean (median) overall observer and participant scores in the POSAS - Patient Observer Scar Assessment Scale on day 14 ±2 clinic follow up.	To assess the appearance of the closed incision and scar. Each item of the POSAS is rated on a 10-point score. The lowest score is '1', which corresponds to the situation of normal skin (i.e. normal pigmentation, no itching). Score 10 equals the largest difference from normal skin (i.e. the worst imaginable scar or sensation)	14 days
Frequency of surgical wound complications according to the ASEPSIS wound score at day 14 ±2 clinic and day 30±2 remote follow up.	Assess the Frequency of Surgical site infections. A higher ASEPSIS score indicates impaired wound healing (a score of >10 indicates an increasing probability and severity of infection)	30 Days
Mean (median) wound pain score using a 0 -10 NRS (numerical rating score) by the study participant each day up to day 7±2. 10 is worst imaginable pain; 0 is no pain.	To assess wound pain daily in the 7 day post-operative period	7 days
Frequency of adverse events (non-device related, and device related) up to day30 ±2	To assess the occurrence of adverse events	30 Days
Mean (median) ease of use score from patients on 5-point NRS (numerical rating score) assessed at day 7 ±2. 5 is excellent ease of use; 4 is good; 3 is adequate; 2 is poor; 1 is inadequate	To assess the ease of use by patients assessments	7 days To assess the ease of use by patients assessments
Mean (median) ease of use score from clinicians on 5-point NRS (numerical rating score) assessed at day 7 ±2. 5 is excellent ease of use; 4 is good; 3 is adequate; 2 is poor; 1 is inadequate	To assess the ease of use by clinicians assessments	7 days
Mean (median) score of overall clinician acceptability of the NPWT system (pump & dressing) on 5-point NRS assessed at day 14 ±2. 5 is Excellent incision management system; 4 is good; 3 is adequate; 2 is poor; 1 is inadequate	To assess overall clinician acceptability of the NPWT system	14 days

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Aatru Medical LLC
• Collaborators: NAMSA
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Jon Mathy, MD, 1Auckland Regional Plastic Surgery Unit and University of Auckland School of Medicine

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): January 26, 2021
• Primary Completion (Actual): August 31, 2023
• Study Completion (Actual): June 16, 2025

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 21, 2020
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 23, 2020
• First Posted (Actual): July 28, 2020

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): July 3, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 2, 2025
• Last Verified: July 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: incisional NPWT
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Wounds and Injuries; Surgical Wound
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2020-01

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: Yes
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: Yes