Smith & Nephew is the world-leading provider of wound care treatment and prevention products used to treat hard-to-heal wounds. These include chronic wounds such as leg, pressure and diabetic foot ulcers as well as burns and post operative wounds. Advanced Wound Management produces and markets products for managing these difficult-to-heal wounds.

Our products are designed to help speed up the healing process and improving patient quality of life. These include advanced polymeric gels, films and foams that create a moist environment that encourages healing; and antimicrobial dressings and ointments for treating and preventing wound infection. Increasingly sophisticated biological materials are available, such as enzyme preparations and mechanical debridement to remove dead and devitalised tissue. Potential benefits to patients include fewer reapplications of dressings, less discomfort and pain, faster healing and reduced risk of complications such as infection and amputation. Treatment is clinically effective and less time-consuming and therefore more cost effective.

Acute wounds can be life threatening with scarring and infection potential issues.  Chronic wounds are often difficult to heal, impacting on quality of life of patients and can be a cost burden to health care providers.

Our market is traditionally nurse orientated although technology is driving physician interest.  Our products represent a small proportion of the total cost of treatment.  We seek to reduce the cost of healing to the healthcare provider whilst increasing the share of that expenditure on medical devices.  Over the years the market has moved from traditional (gauze based) products to advanced (moist wound healing) products to actives (antimicrobials, mechanical devices). The latest technology, Negative Pressure Wound Therapy, was brought into the company in 2007.