A child with spina bifida often has a severely malformed bladder; left untreated, complications can lead to death.
That’s where Concordia Medical‘s resorbable bladder comes in.
The Coventry, R.I. –based company develops and manufactures bioabsorbable and non-bioabsorbable materials. After seeding a bioabsorbable scaffold with a patient’s own cells, a new bladder is grown and implanted in the patient where the scaffold dissipates and leaves behind a new bladder.
The technology can also be used to grow other organs, new cartilage or even new heart valves. Alternatively, using a non-absorbable scaffold lets the body’s own cells grow into its pores to create the new organ or structure.
The bladder application is in Stage 2 clinical trials, president and CEO Randal Spencer tells MassDevice, and the company has a few products close to market.
(Above, Concordia Medical’s director of engineering Al Hollenbeck and the company’s bioabsorbable bladder.)
