There is new hope for patients with chronic, poorly healing wounds: “cold plasma” destroys (even multiresistant) bacteria and stimulates the body’s self-healing powers. COLDPLASMATECH developed a new wound dressing that creates cold plasma directly on the damaged skin.

For the past two decades, scientists at the Greifswald INP (Leibniz Association) have been conducting research on a plasma state that, unlike the sun or lightning, is not scorching-hot, but cool. For 10 years a new area of medicine has been researched: Plasmamedicine – because plasma is bioactive. Now COLDPLASMATECH is making this scientific field available to many patients.

Cold plasma shows significant results on treated patients – but the devices (in a clinical context) weren’t applicable. With its newly developed device COLDPLASMATECH finally offers a product that’s safe, pain-free, fast, can cover a large area and is mass-market compatible. It offers the solution to two main problems of modern medicine: chronic ulceratrions (like bedsores and diabetic feet) and the long sought after solution to treating multiresistant bacteria in wounds.

Results & Successes

COLDPLASMATECH GmbH was founded in June 2015 as a spin-off of the Leibniz Institute for Plasma Science and Technology and has been involved in an approval procedure for its innovative medical products (PlasmaPatch and PlasmaCube) since November 2015. After the approval in Q4/2017, the start-up will launch its medical device (class 2). The team is currently setting up line production with big partners such as WACKER Chemistry, the Dätwyler Group and the Schreiner Group to ensure production capacity in 2018. CE certification for the 0-series patches was achieved in Q1/2017.

Total funding secured to date is  €1.75 million.

COLDPLASMATECH has attracted attention on various levels. Its CEO was voted Hall of Fame at the Entrepreneur of the Year Awards 2016 and nominated again for 2017 because of the mix of unconventional approach, great technology, exceptional team, and following the principles of an honourable businessman.

The start-up was listed top successful German start-up in 2014, 2015 and 2016 and has received numerous awards, amongst them the Invention Award, the Leibniz Founder Prize, the IQ Innovation Award and most recently, the Audience Award at INNOVEIT 2017.

Benefits of EIT Health support

• Winner, Business Plan Aggregator 2016, Medtech & Public Award, Business Plan Aggregator 2016. “This heightened our visibility and helped secure two strategic investors for the last round of investment,” according to CEO. “Through EIT Health, other European countries gained interest in our technology – resulting in invitations to several congresses (e.g. Romania) and contact with other health systems.”
• Pitching at the EIT Health Journalists Thematic Network Meeting in Paris, May 2017, gave COLDPLASMATECH further exposure and a unique opportunity to introduce their project to the European press.
• In October, pitching as one of the five European start-ups selected by EIT Health to attend the Global Investors Forum in Boston increased this international exposure, as did pitching at the European Showcase at OktoberINVESTFEST in New York to US and German, Dutch investors and business leaders.
• Winning the Audience Award at INNOVEIT, October 2017. The CEO, Carsten Mahrenholz, said: “EIT Health can really open doors for start-ups. We just need to step through. This Award is very important to us at COLDPLASMATECH, because it will help us on our journey to reach the patient. It proves that the product speaks to the people and this is what we want to do – bring this technology to the people.”

Vision & Goals

We are pioneering a new field of medicine: Plasmamedicine. It’s our goal to treat patients where modern medicine is reaching it’s limits, according to the CEO.

Team Members (selection)

Martin Polak (Plasmaphysics, PhD); Robert Banaschik (Pharmacy, MSc; Plasmaphysics, PhD); Axel Kuehle (Quality Management); Tobias Güra (Founder, Medical Economy, BSc); Stephan Krafczyk (Founder, Engineering, MSc); Carsten Mahrenholz (Biology, MSc; Economics, MSc; Chemistry, PhD)