Company Profile

Background

​KitoTech Medical was spun out of the University of Washington in 2013 to develop medical products based on its proprietary Microstaple Technology Platform. The Company’s founder, Ronald Berenson, MD, a serial entrepreneur, focused on using this Microstaple technology to develop a novel wound closure product, microMend, that would be an effective alternative to medical staples and sutures. 

The goal was to make a product engineered to provide secure wound closure while painless, fast and easy to apply, and removable by the patient. To achieve these objectives, tiny staples known as Microstaples were incorporated into an adhesive backing the size and shape of a traditional butterfly bandage. The Microstaples provide similar holding strength to sutures and allows microMend to close surgical incisions, lacerations, and skin tears.

Research

​A number of microMend case studies and clinical studies have shown outstanding clinical results for use in emergency medicine, several surgical specialties (general surgery, urology, gynecology, vascular surgery), orthopedics, plastics, dermatology, and obstetrics. Head to head clinical studies comparing microMend to sutures have demonstrated the superiority of microMend in terms of its usability and cosmetic results. ​

Clinical Studies

Initial Market Launch

​microMend was successfully introduced onto the US healthcare market in late 2019. The initial sales focus has been in markets where speed and ease of use are critical in wound closure, including the emergency room and urgent care centers as well as dermatology practices. It has garnered strong interest and market adoption, and is used by major hospitals and clinics throughout the US. In 2020, we are expanding into several additional medical and surgical specialties.


Direct to Consumer Launch

​KitoTech launched an over-the-counter (OTC) version of microMend for the consumer market in May 2020. Our OTC microMend products were introduced in response to growing demand by people who prefer to avoid the risk of being exposed to COVID-19 at medical facilities. In addition, using microMend to treat wounds at home, work, the outdoors, and other settings represents an attractive alternative to an ERs or urgent care clinic visit, which is expensive and inconvenient and not always accessible.  
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​The Future

​Our novel Microstaple Technology serves as a broad platform that can be expanded beyond its application for wound closure. The ability to provide safe and secure attachment to skin makes it particularly useful for attaching a range of medical products to patients’ skin. 

KitoTech Medical has plans to extend this technology to a variety of wound care products, including dressings, skin substitutes, and skin grafts. In addition, we are exploring the use of our Microstaple technology to safely secure medical devices, such as ostomy bags, surgical drains, catheters, pumps, and medical monitors.
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