Debiotech and Fresenius Medical Care Announce Exclusive Partnership for New Home Dialysis Product Development

LAUSANNE, Switzerland and BAD HOMBURG, Germany, November 3, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

Debiotech SA, a Swiss medical device developer with expertise in innovative technologies and miniaturized medical equipment and devices, and Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA (the "company" or "Fresenius Medical Care"; Frankfurt Stock Exchange: FME / New York Stock Exchange: FMS), the world's largest provider of dialysis products and services, announced today they have entered into an exclusive partnership to develop a portfolio of state-of-the-art peritoneal dialysis (PD) technologies.  This partnership will bring Debiotech's specialized expertise to the dialysis industry.  

The new product platform will offer dialysis machines that are lightweight and compact, making it more practical to dialyze at home.  The smaller size of Fresenius Medical Care's new generation of PD machines will provide flexibility for dialysis patients when they travel, their intuitive design will promote ease of use, and their accompanying teaching methods are intended to make it easy for patients who are new to PD to use the machines.

Experts from both companies are working together to plan for multiple generations of innovations, offering more patients the option to dialyze at home than ever before.

"This agreement represents an ideal synergy to help patients everywhere who suffer from end stage renal disease receive the most appropriate treatment at home," said Dr. Frédéric Neftel, President and CEO of Debiotech.  "We are very proud to work together with Fresenius Medical Care's outstanding teams in order to bring new home peritoneal dialysis products to market and offer the hope of improved quality of life for many patients around the world."

"We are dedicated to continuing to produce home dialysis machines that are as easy and convenient as possible for our customers to operate, because this is what they demand and deserve," said Mark Costanzo, President, Fresenius Medical Care Renal Therapies Group. "We expect that collaborating with such an exceptional team will provide dialysis patients with generations of products that will offer them a new level of ease of use and flexibility to help them meet their goal to dialyze at home."

The Fresenius Medical Care and Debiotech partnership is exclusive globally, with the exception of Japan.

Worldwide, more than 2.6 million patients with end stage renal disease regularly undergo dialysis treatment, a vital blood cleansing procedure that substitutes the function of the kidney.

About Debiotech 

Debiotech has specialized, for over twenty five years, in the research and development of innovative medical devices, with a focus on miniaturization of drug delivery systems and artificial organs for the treatment of severe diseases such as diabetes, renal failure, cardiovascular diseases and cancer. The company's products are based on micromechanics and nanotechnologies, as well as novel technologies and advanced multimedia software. Debiotech has received numerous prestigious awards for its innovative products, such as several "Medical Design Excellence Awards", "Swiss Technology" and "Medtech" Awards. Debiotech has over 40 exclusive license agreements with leading companies in medical devices and pharmaceuticals and holds over 500 patents worldwide.

Further information on Debiotech can be found at http://www.debiotech.com.

About Fresenius Medical Care 

Fresenius Medical Care is the world's largest provider of products and services for individuals with renal diseases of which more than 2.6 million patients worldwide regularly undergo dialysis treatment. Through its network of 3,402 dialysis clinics, Fresenius Medical Care provides dialysis treatments for 290,250 patients around the globe. Fresenius Medical Care is also the leading provider of dialysis products such as dialysis machines or dialyzers. Along with the core business, the company focuses on expanding the range of additional medical services in the field of care coordination. For more information about Fresenius Medical Care, visit the company's website at http://www.freseniusmedicalcare.com.

Disclaimer

This release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements due to certain factors, including changes in business, economic and competitive conditions, regulatory reforms, foreign exchange rate fluctuations, uncertainties in litigation or investigative proceedings, and the availability of financing. These and other risks and uncertainties are detailed in Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA's reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA does not undertake any responsibility to update the forward-looking statements in this release.

Media Contacts:
Laurent-Dominique Piveteau
COO
Debiotech SA
Phone: +41-21-623-60-00
Fax: +41-21-623-60-01
email: [email protected]

Matthias Link
Corporate Communications
Fresenius Medical Care
Else-Kröner-Straße 1
61352 Bad Homburg
Germany
T +49-6172-609-2872
F +49-6172-609-2294
[email protected]
http://www.freseniusmedicalcare.com

Media Contact North America:
Jon D. Stone
T +1-781-699-9704
M +1-781-392-4680
[email protected]

SOURCE Debiotech S.A.