Relief is on the way for patients with diabetic foot ulcer, as a United States-based Nigerian Medical Doctor, Christopher Otiko has discovered a drug for the treatment of the ailment.
Addressing a press conference in Abuja yesterday, Dr Otiko said the drug, Tetracyte, has been medically certified as the ‘world’s most potent drug for the treatment of diabetic ulcer’.
Otiko, the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Medical Director, ViaDerma Inc, explained that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States has confirmed the drug as healing “ten times faster than any available drug for the treatment of diabetic ulcer”.
“Vitastem is approved and acknowledged by the Food and Drugs agency in the United States to be the world’s most potent drug for the treatment of Diabetes, as the drug heals ten times faster than any available drug for the treatment of diabetes.
“The effectiveness of the drug has helped to prevent such devastating situations as amputation which is a common consequence of diabetes”, he stated.
The medical practitioner said the medication has been used to successfully treat patients in Japan, Nigeria and the United States including those are would have had their limbs amputated, stressing that it takes a maximum of three weeks to heal after taking the medication.
“In terms of pricing, it is going to be affordable. It is not all about the money at this point. I can use the money that I make in the United State to subsidize the cost so that almost everybody can afford it,” Dr Otiko said.
The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) estimates that the number of people with diabetes mellitus will rise from 537 million in 2021 to 643 million by 2030 and to 783 million in 2045, with approximately 80 per cent of this increase occurring in developing countries.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates the prevalence of diabetes in Nigeria to be 4.3 per cent.
Foot ulcers are one of the most common complications of diabetes mellitus. It is estimated that 2.5 per cent of persons with diabetes develop diabetic foot ulcers each year, of which 14 – 24% will require amputation.
