Fresenius Medical Care Launches UFComplete, a Collaborative Fluid-Management Program for Congestive Heart Failure Patients

Fresenius Medical Care North America (FMCNA), the nation’s leading network of dialysis facilities, today announced the launch of UFComplete, a complete fluid-management program for congestive heart failure (CHF) patients. The program – which combines clinically proven ultrafiltration (UF) therapy with cost-effective home monitoring and education initiatives – will be administered by FMCNA’s highly trained multidisciplinary staff in collaboration with hospitals’ own physicians and nurses.

Each year, nearly 5 million Americans are hospitalized with CHF – a condition in which patients’ weakened hearts move blood through their bodies more slowly than normal, causing excess fluid to build up in the arms, legs, ankles, feet, lungs or other organs. CHF is one of the most common reasons for admission to U.S. hospitals, often requiring lengthy and costly stays, and half of those patients are readmitted within six months of their initial discharge.

UF therapy has been shown to slowly and safely lower patients’ excess salt and water levels when conventional diuretic drug treatments fail. It is supported by more than 60 years of published data and randomized clinical trials, and is endorsed by leading heart failure experts.

FMCNA’s innovative UF therapy program builds upon its industry-leading dialysis expertise and inpatient programs with more than 1,000 hospitals nationwide to provide cost-effective UF treatments that significantly improve patient outcomes, reduce hospital admissions and length of stay, and help hospitals avoid financial penalties and the need for capital expenditures.

As part of UFComplete, after patients are discharged, they continue to receive three months of follow-up services including daily electronic weight reporting and 24-hour nurse phone support. Clinicians receive live alerts of patient non-compliance or heart failure symptoms, giving them the opportunity to intervene and treat patients earlier. FMCNA also works with hospital staff on educational programs encouraging patients to avoid salt, exercise regularly and take their medications daily.

“We understand that treating heart failure can be both challenging and costly, which is why we created the UFComplete program to help reduce hospital readmissions and length of stay,” said Dr. John Wigneswaran, Vice President of Market Development and head of FMCNA’s UFComplete fluid-management program. “With the added benefits of our new UFComplete program, Fresenius Medical Care looks forward to making a real difference in treating a disease that affects millions of Americans and creates an enormous burden on our healthcare system.”

The UFComplete program offers an à la carte menu that can be tailored to fit the needs of each hospital through a customized service contract, which may include UF devices, filters and ancillary materials; skilled nurses for device setup, take down and flowchart review and home monitoring services; and physician oversight and management. FMCNA also is partnering with the American Association of Heart Failure Nurses and the Cardiometabolic Health Congress to raise CHF patients’ awareness of recommended lifestyle modifications.

For more information about this program, call toll-free at 855-362-4383 or email [e-mail].

About Fresenius Medical Care

Fresenius Medical Care (NYSE: FMS) is the world’s leading company devoted to patient-centered renal therapy. Through more than 3,119 clinics in North America, Europe, Latin America, Asia-Pacific and Africa, we provide kidney dialysis treatments to approximately 253,000 patients worldwide. We are also the world’s leading maker of dialysis products, such as dialysis machines, dialyzers and related disposable products. Chronic kidney failure is a condition that affects more than 2.1 million individuals worldwide. For more information about the company’s more than 2,100 U.S. dialysis facilities, visit www.ultracare-dialysis.com (in English and Spanish). For more information about Fresenius Medical Care, visit www.fmc-ag.com or www.fmcna.com.