FREMONT, Calif., and CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Oct. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Curon Medical, Inc. and Body1, Inc. today announced a new consumer educational partnership. Under the terms of the partnership, the two companies will collaborate in expanding the content available to patients at http://www.Reflux1.com, a leading, focused health portal for heartburn and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). The expanded content is designed to better assist health consumers as they seek information about their condition and physicians who offer advanced therapies, including Curon Medical’s Stretta(R) procedure for the treatment of GERD. It includes animations, videos, assessment tools, and other advanced, intelligent multimedia to help patients identify and understand the variety of therapies available to them.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050318/CURONLOGO )
There are approximately 19 million patients in the United States alone who suffer daily from GERD, heartburn, or acid reflux. http://www.Reflux1.com is dedicated to providing these patients and their families with a comprehensive knowledge resource to address their information needs. This alliance also creates an Internet-based channel designed to provide educational information about medical technologies for treating chronic gastric reflux and heartburn. The educational program on http://Reflux1.com highlights Curon Medical’s advances with the minimally invasive Stretta procedure for GERD.
“With the Stretta procedure, physicians can offer selected patients a treatment that has been shown to reduce drug dependency and improve quality of life,” said Larry C. Heaton II, President and Chief Executive Officer of Curon Medical. “Providing information to patients about the availability of the minimally invasive Stretta treatment as an alternative to either lifelong drug therapy or anti-reflux surgery should assist them in their discussions about treatment options with their physicians.”
“We are delighted to work with such an important leader in medical technologies for patient care as Curon Medical,” said Christopher P. Messina, Chief Executive Officer of Body1, Inc. “We believe that they have all the ingredients for advancing the state of the art in patient care -- the vision, the people, and the products.”
About Curon Medical, Inc.
Curon Medical develops, manufactures and markets innovative proprietary products for the treatment of gastrointestinal disorders. The Company’s products and products under development consist of radiofrequency generators and single use disposable devices. Its first product, the Stretta System, received U.S. Food and Drug Administration clearance in April 2000 for the treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease, commonly referred to as GERD. The Company’s Secca System for the treatment of bowel incontinence received clearance from the FDA in March 2002. For more information on the Company or its products, please visit the Company’s website at http://www.curonmedical.com.
About The Stretta System
Curon’s proprietary Stretta System provides physicians with the tools to perform a minimally invasive, outpatient endoscopic procedure for the treatment of GERD. The Stretta System consists of the Stretta Catheter, which is a disposable, flexible catheter and the Curon Control Module. Using the Stretta System, the physician delivers temperature-controlled radiofrequency energy to create thermal lesions in the muscle of the lower esophageal sphincter (LES). The tissue response to radiofrequency delivery alters LES function, which results in statistically significant improvements in GERD symptom scores, reduction in acid exposure and reduction in anti-secretory medication requirement.
About Reflux1.com
http://www.Reflux1.com is the leading credible focused site for gastric reflux (otherwise known as “GERD”), heartburn, and related disorders. It serves physicians and patients’ needs with user-friendly, intelligent, interactive web sources. The site contains detailed information on these conditions, diagnostics, medications, and advanced endoscopic treatments for those with GERD. Forums, bulletin boards, and blogs facilitate rich interactivity among consumers. The site is accredited by the Health on the Net (HON) Foundation. In March 2005 http://www.Reflux1.com was recognized for excellence by the Health Improvement Institute with a 2004 Aesculapius Award.
About Body1
Body1, Inc. (http://www.Body1.net) educates targeted populations on behalf of medical product manufacturers through its network of condition-specific patient portals. These portals include award-winning sites such as http://www.Heart1.com, http://www.Reflux1.com, and http://www.Knee1.com. In addition to patient education, Body1 provides knowledge-based tools, medical content, and interactive education programs for medical sales forces and clinicians. It also builds and manages medical websites for medical firms, brands, and physicians. Body1’s programs all advance the adoption of innovation that enhances human health.
Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050318/CURONLOGOPRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.comCuron Medical, Inc.
CONTACT: Larry C. Heaton II, President and Chief Executive Officer, ofCuron Medical Inc., +1-510-661-1801, lheaton@curonmedical.com; or Melody A.Carey, Investor Relations , of Rx Communications Group, LLC,+1-917-322-2571, mcarey@rxir.com; or Chris Messina, Chief ExecutiveOfficer, +1-617-576-9400, cmessina@body1.com; or Kerri Lis, Director ofContent & Special Projects, +1- 617-576-9400, klis@body1.com, both of Body1Inc.
