Smith & Nephew Launches Dissolvable Nasal Dressing

Smith & Nephew has launched its new Nasastent Dissolvable Nasal Dressing, a structural intranasal splint used to minimize bleeding and prevent post-op adhesions after sinus surgery.

Made from a plant-based material known as CarboxyMethyl Cellulose (CMC), the Nasastent dressing can easily be customized by trimming it to fit the size needs of each patient, the company claimed in a news release. The product also offers tapered edges for ease of placement into the nasal cavity. Once in place, the soft dressing quickly regains its shape as it conforms to the patient’s anatomy, providing sufficient pressure to minimize bleeding and hold the surrounding soft tissues in place as they heal. Recent testing shows that the Nasastent dressing’s compressive strength is six times greater than its leading competitor and provides significantly higher tissue separation force over a variety of simulated nasal cavity gaps ranging from 7 millimeters to 10 millimeters.¹

Unlike other structural dressings which break down into fragments that must later be removed by a doctor, the CMC used in the Nasastent dressing converts into a hydrocolloidal gel after absorbing sufficient nasal fluid and simply drains from the cavity as part of the natural outflow. CMC has a well-documented clinical history with more two decades of use in the pharmaceutical ² and medical device³ industries. The Nasastent dressing can absorb up to 16 times its dry weight in fluid and does not require any special storage conditions.⁴

“Smith & Nephew is committed to innovation that improves both the patient and the physician experience and is proud to offer technologies such as Nasastent within our specialist ENT surgical portfolio,” said Mira Sahney, Smith and Nephew’s general manager for ENT and Gynecology.

Smith and Nephew is based in London, United Kingdom.

References:

1. P/N 67244 

2. The use of micronized cellulose disintegrants as insoluble swellable matrices for sustained-release tablets. Nakagami H, Nada M. Drug Des Deliv. 1991 Jul;7(4):321-32.

3. Reduction of adhesions after uterine myomectomy by Seprafilm membrane (HAL-F): a blinded, prospective, randomized, multicenter clinical study. Seprafilm Adhesion Study Group. Diamond MP. Fertil Steril. 1996 Dec; 66(6):904-10.

4. P/N 67130