Thomas Menitz, CEO and COO of L&R, Dr. Christian Rohrer (Director Research & Development L&R), Peter Grillitsch (Director Global Marketing), Matthias Nemec (Head of Medical Technology at R&D) and Manuel Wagner (Product Developer / R&D), accepted the €4,000 prize at a ceremony in the House of Digitalization in Tulln. Suprasorb CNP endo is a complete system for endoscopic negative pressure therapy in the oesophagus and rectum. Endoscopic negative pressure therapy has only recently begun to be used as a treatment; it can save patients' lives. The award recognizes L&R's R&D and innovation achievements, which the company bundles in the field of medical technology at its Lower Austrian site in Schönau a. d. Triesting. It is already the third innovation award for the L&R medical technology range.Suprasorb CNP endo has also been nominated for the Austrian State Prize for Innovation.
The development of Suprasorb CNP endo was an interdisciplinary team effort: in addition to the L&R development team led by Matthias Nemec, Head of Medical Technology at R&D in Schönau, international experts, users and partners were also involved. The complete system has been on the market and in use in Austria and Germany since fall 2023. Endoscopic negative pressure therapy is used by surgeons and gastroenterologists for patients with anastomotic insufficiencies, perforations or other leaks in the oesophagus and rectum. These are usually postoperative complications after surgical procedures, e.g. after resections due to cancer or alcohol addiction.
The Suprasorb CNP endo complete system comprises a therapy unit with coordinated software and four component kits for intraluminal and intracavitary negative pressure therapy in the upper and lower gastrointestinal tract. The kits are designed to be therapy- and user-friendly and contain coordinated components for controlled endoscopic negative pressure therapy. The pressure build-up is controlled via the Suprasorb CNP endo device and its special software; the “key product” of the 9 components is the foam drainage for treating the defect. Apart from L&R, there is only one supplier of a system for endoscopic negative pressure therapy, but Suprasorb CNP endo is the only system with a therapy unit for electronically controlled generation of negative pressure and an integrated feeding tube for simultaneous enteral nutrition during therapy in the oesophagus.
Innovations as a guarantee of success
Thomas Menitz, CEO and COO of L&R: “L&R and medical technology – we belong together. We are very proud of what we have already achieved with our Suprasorb CNP negative pressure therapy range and now with CNP endo! After all, medical technology can truly save patients' lives and make doctors' work much easier. We are constantly working on new innovations and the further development of our products, which are oriented towards the needs of our customers. Often, as with Suprasorb CNP endo, it is also a joint development process with users. Many thanks to our colleagues in R&D and to our partners! We are delighted that this joint innovative achievement has also been recognized and appreciated by the state of Lower Austria and the Lower Austrian Chamber of Commerce.”
L&R launches 10 – 15 new products every year. L&R drives medical progress with product and system solutions and services in five of its own R&D centers - including the one in Schönau a.d. Triesting. In 2024, the globally active company, which has sites in Schönau a.d. Triesting, Vienna, Graz and Dornbirn in Austria, generated sales of around 813 million euros.
Third innovation award for L&R and Suprasorb CNP range
In 2011, L&R's Suprasorb CNP drainage film was awarded the Rhineland-Palatinate Innovation Prize, and in 2016 the Suprasorb CNP EasyDress negative pressure bandage was awarded the Lower Austrian Innovation Prize in the “Innovations for the Economy” category. Both high-tech solutions are also the result of L&R's own research and development.
Under the name Suprasorb CNP - Controlled Negative Pressure - L&R has been offering a complete system for negative pressure therapy with all the necessary components since 2008. At the heart of this is the Suprasorb CNP P3 therapy unit, which generates the negative pressure and is suitable for both stationary and mobile use. Negative pressure therapy is often used after analyzing the wound situation when conventional wound care methods do not appear to be sufficient. Areas of application include acute wounds, postoperatively infected wounds, burns and chronic wounds such as pressure sores or venous leg ulcers. Practice shows that negative pressure therapy can lead to more effective wound healing and accelerated wound closure in patients.
Images - Fotocredit: Erich Marschik
