ICU Medical's ClearGuard^™ HD Antimicrobial Barrier Cap Named a 2020 Top Infection Prevention Product by Newsweek and The Leapfrog Group

San Clemente, Calif. May 12, 2020 — ICU Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ICUI), a worldwide leader in the development, manufacture and sale of innovative medical devices used in infusion therapy and critical care applications, today announced its ClearGuard HD antimicrobial barrier cap has been named one of the best infection prevention products of 2020 by Newsweek and The Leapfrog Group. The inaugural Newsweek Best Infection Prevention Products list highlights products and solutions used by leading hospitals to combat the spread of infections in their facilities.

ClearGuard HD caps kill infection-causing microorganisms inside a hemodialysis catheter hub to help reduce infections. It is a safe, effective and easy-to-use solution that has been shown in two clinical studies to reduce bloodstream infections when compared to current products.^1,2 ICU Medical added ClearGuard HD caps to its portfolio with the purchase of Pursuit Vascular in November 2019 to strengthen its consumables product line. The caps are designed to help reduce costly and potentially life-threatening central line-associated bloodstream infections.

Newsweek, in partnership with The Leapfrog Group—an independent nonprofit that evaluates health care quality—made its selections and ratings using publicly available data, including the data voluntarily submitted by health care facilities to the annual Leapfrog Hospital Survey and Leapfrog Ambulatory Surgery Center Survey. Teams of experts and analysts reviewed the data to identify high performers.

"When looking at safety and effectiveness, evaluations from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) were considered, along with published research studies," notes Newsweek. "The quality of the research studies that demonstrated the effectiveness of the product were evaluated by looking at reproducibility, the closeness between lab data/results and real-world application of the data/results, and closeness of fit between the choices of test or method of testing and what they were testing for."

The ClearGuard HD cap is the only device available for sale in the U.S. that is clinically proven to reduce central line associated infections in hemodialysis patients with catheters.^1,2 Bloodstream infection is a leading cause of hospitalizations and the second leading cause of death in hemodialysis patients, with catheters causing most of these infections.

"We’re honored that Newsweek and The Leapfrog Group recognized the ClearGuard HD cap as one of the top infection prevention products in this first-ever listing,” said Doug Killion, ICU Medical’s vice president of ClearGuard commercial operations. “This distinction is important because it highlights our continued focus on improving patient safety and reducing health care costs.”

For more information about the 2020 selections and to view the ClearGuard HD cap listing, click here.

Media Contact:
ICU Medical, Inc.
Tom McCall, Corporate Vice President and General Manager
(949) 366-4368
tom.mccall@icumed.com