CSL Behring Medical Product Donation Helps Meet Critical Need for Ongoing Cholera Relief Effort in Haiti

SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Dec. 6, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Direct Relief International announced today that CSL Behring has donated critically needed medical supplies to assist cholera patients in Haiti. The products will be used at Justinian University Hospital (JUH) in Cap-Haitien. JUH is the main public hospital for the entire northern sector of the country; the I.V. solutions and supplies will also be distributed to the numerous cholera treatment units (CTUs) that have been established in the cholera outbreak area as dictated by need.

The donation, consisting of 4,632 bags of Lactated Ringers solution, 1,500 infusion sets, and 1,500 safety catheters, will help treat patients who have been hospitalized due to infection with cholera, a serious condition that has affected Haiti in epidemic proportions in recent months.  The solution is administered intravenously and will be used mainly to replenish body fluids in patients who have experienced severe dehydration as a result of their condition. It may also be used as a conduit for other medicines to be administered to cholera patients.

This is CSL Behring's second donation of medical supplies to Direct Relief International, which helps local health facilities in over 70 countries treat people affected by poverty, disaster, and civil unrest.

"CSL Behring is honored and pleased to be in a position to once again help the people of Haiti," said Peter Turner, President of CSL Behring. "They have endured so much. We hope our contribution will bring some relief to those who need it the most. They are certainly in our thoughts."

"We are so grateful for CSL Behring's contribution of Lactated Ringers solution, infusion sets and safety I.V. catheters," said Nate Nickerson RN, DrPH, Executive Director of Konbit Sante, long-time partner of the Justinian University Hospital.  "Up to 80 percent of stricken patients should be able to be rehydrated with ORS, but of the hundreds of patients in Cap-Haitien coming to the cholera treatment centers each day, the vast majority are so dehydrated by the time they arrive that they require I.V. hydration to survive.  CSL Behring's donation of I.V. products is truly life-saving and will be deployed where it is most needed in the area."

In the months following the 7.0-magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti's capital, Direct Relief has delivered emergency medical assistance valued at more than $54 million (wholesale) – over 643 tons – to more than 100 healthcare providers. Having worked in Haiti since 1964, Direct Relief had strong relationships with the country's largest hospitals and clinics, allowing the organization to rapidly deploy resources to where they were needed most.

About Direct Relief International

Founded in 1948, Direct Relief is a Santa Barbara, California-based nonprofit organization focused on improving quality of life by bringing critically needed medicines and supplies to local healthcare providers worldwide. Direct Relief has provided more than $1 billion in privately funded humanitarian aid since 2000, including more than $225 million in assistance in the United States. It has earned a fundraising efficiency score of 100 percent for the eighth year from Forbes in 2010, and is ranked by the Chronicle of Philanthropy as California's largest international nonprofit organization based on private support. For more information, please visit www.DirectRelief.org.

About CSL Behring

CSL Behring is a leader in the plasma protein therapeutics industry. Committed to saving lives and improving the quality of life for people with rare and serious diseases, the company manufactures and markets a range of plasma-derived and recombinant therapies worldwide. CSL Behring therapies are indicated for the treatment of coagulation disorders including hemophilia and von Willebrand disease, primary immune deficiencies and inherited respiratory disease. The company's products are also used in cardiac surgery, organ transplantation, burn treatment and to prevent hemolytic diseases in newborns. CSL Behring operates one of the world's largest plasma collection networks, CSL Plasma. CSL Behring is a subsidiary of CSL Limited (ASX: CSL), a biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. For more information, visit www.cslbehring.com.

SOURCE Direct Relief International