The University of Arizona College of Medicine and OmegaGenesis Announce Collaboration Agreement to Address Diabetic F...( TUCSON Ariz. and GILROY Calif. April ...)

TUCSON, Ariz., and GILROY, Calif., April 6 /PRNewswire/ -- The Department of Surgery at The University of Arizona College of Medicine and OmegaGenesis, Inc., announced an agreement to collaborate on potential remedies to address diabetic foot ulcers.

The agreement includes joint work in support of potential remedies and to identify effective ways to provide information and education to medical professionals and patients globally.

Diabetic foot ulcers are painful, open sores that develop on the feet of people with diabetes. If not diagnosed and treated promptly, diabetic foot ulcers can cause extensive damage to soft-tissue and bone that may necessitate amputation.

"This is a global problem that is profoundly affecting millions of people in the United States and throughout the world," said Dr. David Armstrong, University of Arizona (UA) professor of surgery and the director of the University's Southern Arizona Limb Salvage Alliance (SALSA). "The problem is especially challenging in the developing world, where education and a remedy can have a significant impact."

Estimates indicate people with diabetes have about a 25-percent lifetime risk for developing a foot ulcer; half of these ulcers become infected. Of these, 1 in 4 will undergo amputation, and one amputation is performed every 30 seconds around the world.

The UA Department of Surgery, Dr. Armstrong and Dr. Horacio Rilo, also a UA professor of surgery, have established a new laboratory and are conducting research in the areas of diabetes and prevention of limb amputations resulting from diabetic ulcers. Dr. Rilo also is director of cellular transplantation and co-director of the Arizona Diabetes Center at the UA.

The UA is collaborating with OmegaGenesis to address common goals in testing remedies to address foot ulcers, providing education and in reducing amputations relate
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