Kerecis Launches Compact Fish-Skin Platform to Improve Deep Wound Management and Reduce Graft Waste
Kerecis, a company focused on tissue regeneration using sustainably sourced fish skin, has announced the launch of Compact, a new fish-skin graft platform designed to address the challenges associated with treating deep, complex and irregular wounds. The new platform converts fragmented fish skin into a compressed disc format intended to reduce material waste, improve handling and simplify placement in difficult-to-treat wound spaces.
Compact will be available through two product families, MariGen® Compact and SurgiClose® Compact. Both products are designed to provide the deep coverage associated with fragmented fish-skin grafts while offering clinicians a format intended to make application more practical in wounds with complex geometries.
The launch expands Kerecis’ growing portfolio of fish-skin-based tissue regeneration products and reflects the company’s continued focus on developing solutions around the practical needs of clinicians managing complex wounds.
Deep wounds can present significant challenges because they may include tunnels, undermined areas, cavities and irregular tissue defects that are difficult to access or fill using conventional graft formats. Fragmented fish skin has been used in these types of applications because it can conform to complex wound structures and contribute to the formation of tissue volume within defects.
Kerecis designed Compact to build on these characteristics while addressing handling and material-use considerations associated with fragmented graft material.
New Format Designed for Complex Wound Geometry
The Compact platform is delivered as a compressed disc. According to Kerecis, the format is engineered to help reduce waste and make graft placement easier in deep and irregular wound spaces.
Following rehydration, clinicians can position the graft directly within the affected area. The compressed format is intended to provide a practical approach for wounds where clinicians need to place regenerative material into deeper tissue spaces, including tunneling wounds and areas of undermining.
The ability to conform to irregular wound geometries is particularly relevant in complex wound care. Unlike wounds with relatively flat surfaces, deep defects may extend beneath the surrounding skin or involve multiple interconnected spaces. These characteristics can make it difficult to place conventional graft materials accurately.
Compact is designed to address this challenge by providing a format that can be positioned within deeper wound spaces while maintaining the regenerative properties associated with Kerecis’ fragmented fish-skin technology.
The company said the platform also has the potential to reduce graft waste. By providing the fish-skin material in a compressed disc format, clinicians can work with a more consolidated product rather than managing loose fragments individually.
MariGen Compact for Advanced Wound Care
The first product family, MariGen Compact, is designed for wound specialists treating partial- and full-thickness wounds.
The product is intended for applications including diabetic foot ulcers, pressure injuries, vascular ulcers and other complex wound defects. These wounds can vary considerably in depth, shape and tissue condition, requiring clinicians to adapt their approach according to the characteristics of each individual wound.
MariGen Compact is designed to adhere to and fill deep wound spaces while helping build tissue volume in areas such as tunnels and undermined tissue.
Diabetic foot ulcers, for example, can involve complex wound structures and may require extended wound-management strategies. Pressure injuries and vascular ulcers can similarly present challenges related to wound depth, tissue quality and irregular geometry.
By providing a compressed fish-skin format, MariGen Compact is intended to give wound-care professionals another option for delivering regenerative material into these challenging spaces.
The product will be offered in multiple sizes, allowing clinicians to select a format appropriate for different wound dimensions and anatomical locations.
SurgiClose Compact for Surgical and Trauma Applications
The second product family, SurgiClose Compact, is intended for surgical and trauma applications.
Surgical wounds and traumatic injuries can create deep tissue defects that are difficult to manage using conventional wound-closure or grafting approaches. Examples include degloving injuries, open fractures, surgical wounds and amputation closures.
SurgiClose Compact is designed to provide coverage within these deeper and irregular spaces. Its compressed disc format is intended to simplify handling and placement while providing regenerative fish-skin material where it is needed.
Trauma wounds can be particularly variable in their geometry. Injuries may involve extensive tissue disruption, exposed structures and irregular cavities. Surgical procedures can also create defects that vary considerably in depth and shape.
The availability of a graft format designed for deep wound spaces can give clinicians an additional option when managing these types of tissue defects.
Like MariGen Compact, SurgiClose Compact will be available in multiple sizes, providing flexibility across different wound types and anatomical requirements.
Addressing Clinician Handling and Material Waste
One of the central goals behind the Compact platform is to address practical challenges associated with the use of fragmented fish skin.
Fragmented graft material can provide flexibility when treating complex wound geometries because individual pieces can be placed into irregular spaces. However, managing fragmented material can also create handling considerations and may result in unused material depending on the characteristics of a particular wound.
Kerecis developed Compact as a compressed format intended to retain the deep-coverage advantages of fragmented fish skin while simplifying preparation and placement.
Mike Cadigan, Region US Vice President, Coloplast Wound & Tissue Repair, said clinicians had expressed interest in retaining the regenerative performance associated with fragmented fish skin while obtaining a format that is more practical to use.
“Compact is one of those products that seems simple, but solves a real problem,” Cadigan said. He explained that clinicians wanted the same regenerative performance they see with fragmented fish skin in a format designed to be easier to use.
According to Cadigan, Compact provides the deep coverage clinicians have come to rely on while being designed to minimize waste and improve the overall user experience.
Expanding Fish-Skin-Based Tissue Regeneration
The launch of Compact represents another expansion of Kerecis’ fish-skin product portfolio. The company has built its tissue-regeneration approach around the use of sustainably sourced fish skin as a biological material.
Fish skin contains structural components that can serve as a scaffold during tissue regeneration. Kerecis has developed technologies and products designed to use this material in wound-management and tissue-repair applications.
The Compact platform extends this approach into a new product configuration. Instead of changing the underlying fish-skin material, the new platform focuses on how the material is delivered and handled by clinicians.
This distinction is important because product format can have a significant impact on practical clinical use. A graft designed for a broad, relatively shallow wound may not be equally suitable for a deep cavity or tunnel. Similarly, material that can be manipulated into irregular spaces may require additional handling during application.
Compact is intended to address these considerations by providing a consolidated format specifically designed for deeper wound spaces and irregular defects.
Potential Applications Across Different Wound Types
The range of applications targeted by the two Compact product families reflects the diversity of complex wounds encountered in clinical practice.
MariGen Compact is focused primarily on wound-care settings, including diabetic foot ulcers, pressure injuries and vascular ulcers. These wounds can require prolonged treatment and may include areas of undermining or tissue loss.
SurgiClose Compact, by contrast, is intended for surgical and trauma settings. Its potential applications include degloving injuries, open fractures, surgical wounds and amputation closures.
Although the clinical settings differ, both product families address a common requirement: the ability to manage deep and irregular tissue defects.
The availability of multiple sizes is intended to further expand the platform’s flexibility. Clinicians can select products based on the dimensions and characteristics of individual wounds rather than relying on a single standardized format.
Focus on Practical Tissue-Regeneration Solutions
Kerecis said the launch reflects its ongoing effort to translate clinical feedback into practical tissue-regeneration technologies.
The development of Compact illustrates how product design can complement biological performance. While the underlying regenerative properties of fish-skin technology remain central to the platform, the new format focuses on improving the way clinicians handle and apply the material.
Reducing waste can also be relevant from a practical and operational perspective. A format designed to use material efficiently may help clinicians better match the amount of graft material with the requirements of individual wounds.
Improved handling may similarly contribute to workflow efficiency, particularly in procedures where clinicians must work within deep or difficult-to-access spaces.
Building on the Kerecis Portfolio
Compact adds another format to Kerecis’ expanding range of fish-skin-based products. The company’s portfolio is designed to support tissue regeneration across different clinical applications and wound characteristics.
The launch of MariGen Compact and SurgiClose Compact provides options for both wound-care specialists and clinicians managing surgical or traumatic tissue defects.
By offering the platform in multiple sizes and two product families, Kerecis is seeking to address a broad range of clinical situations while maintaining a common approach to fish-skin-based tissue regeneration.
The company’s emphasis on deep wound coverage, handling and waste reduction reflects the practical challenges clinicians encounter when treating complex tissue defects.
The launch of Compact marks the latest step in Kerecis’ development of fish-skin-based tissue-regeneration technologies. The compressed disc platform is designed to provide the deep coverage associated with fragmented fish skin while offering a format intended to simplify application and reduce material waste.
MariGen Compact will target wound-care applications such as diabetic foot ulcers, pressure injuries, vascular ulcers and other partial- and full-thickness wounds. SurgiClose Compact will address surgical and trauma applications, including degloving injuries, open fractures, surgical wounds and amputation closures.
Both product families will be available in multiple sizes to accommodate different wound dimensions and anatomies.
As complex wound management continues to require approaches tailored to individual wound characteristics, technologies that can address deep spaces, tunnels, undermining and irregular geometries remain an important area of product development.
With Compact, Kerecis is extending its fish-skin platform into a new delivery format focused on the practical needs of clinicians. The company aims to combine the regenerative characteristics of its fish-skin technology with improved handling, reduced waste and simplified placement, providing another option for clinicians managing challenging wound defects and tissue-regeneration procedures.
About Kerecis
Kerecis develops intact fish-tissue derived products for cellular therapy, tissue regeneration, and protection. When grafted onto damaged human tissue or implanted, the patented material supports the body’s own processes to heal and regenerate. Because no viral or prion transfer risk exists between Atlantic cod and humans, Kerecis products are only gently processed and retain their similarity to human tissue.
The gentle processing preserves the material’s original three-dimensional structure, maintaining its inherent natural strength, complexity, and molecules (such as fatty acids). Clinical studies show that Kerecis products heal wounds faster than competitors. Kerecis is the only global manufacturer of medical devices containing intact fish-tissue and is the fastest growing company in the U.S. xenograft biologics skin market.
Products include SurgiBind®/SurgiClose®, GraftGuide®, MariGen®, and Shield™ that address various medical complications. Committed to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, Kerecis uses sustainably sourced Icelandic fish processed with renewable energy. Kerecis is a part of the Coloplast Group, a leading supplier of intimate healthcare products.