Desu Medical
High-Quality and Innovative Neurosurgery Solutions

Hydrocephalus is one of the most common diseases encountered by neurosurgery clinics. It is caused when more than normal cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) volumes accumulate in the ventricle pool of the brain, causing life-threatening pressure to neural tissue. Accompanied by complications like severe headaches, visual disturbances, epileptic seizures and paralysis, the disorder’s global impact drives the need for timely and effective treatment.

Desu Medical is heeding this call with its portfolio of controlled antibiotic-releasing ventriculoperitoneal shunt systems.

It has been developing these life saving devices for 17 years and is the second company in the world to produce controlled antibiotic-releasing shunts in the neurosurgery and orthopaedics field. Equally important to Desu’s highly efficient antibiotic catheter is its antibiotic valve body, which is well-known for reducing potential hydrocephalus complications and elevate treatment quality. Desu also produces pure collagen-based self-adhesive brain membranes that eliminate the need for sutures during surgery.

“Our ventriculoperitoneal shunt systems are life-saving devices that effectively treat hydrocephalus patients worldwide and prevent post-op complications to connect them back to life,” says Dr. Mehmet Sorar, founder and CEO of Desu Medical.

The company’s ventriculoperitoneal shunt systems balance and regulate a patient’s brain pressure and CSF levels. It releases controlled antibiotics for 28 days to bring the central nervous system (CNS) infection rates, which is approximately 10 percent when using conventional shunts, down to one percent or less.

One of the most recurring complications in hydrocephalus surgery is CNS infections. According to the World Health Organisation, it causes mortality in 25 percent of patients and drives mental retardation in 50 percent of cases. On a global scale, it affects 10 percent of all patients undergoing shunt surgeries—20 percent in developing countries and 7 percent in developed countries.

Changing this narrative, Desu’s antibiotic-releasing shunt systems successfully encompass post-surgical infections. Proving this success is a scientific article of a study conducted by Cukurova University published in September 2022 by the Journal of Neurosurgical Sciences, a peer-reviewed neurology-based medical journal. Another study on Desu’s controlled drug release solution was conducted by Hacettepe University’s Faculty of Chemical Engineering, which validated its shunt system’s antibiotics output and ability to eliminate fatal complications by providing controlled antibiotic release for a minimum of 28 days.

Considering how its medical devices are surgically implanted in the human body, they must meet stringent international quality and hygienic production standards. Recognising this, Desu collaborates with universities equipped with 1,000 and 10,000 clean rooms, where products can be developed under the supervision of expert quality management personnel that help meet all international mandates and specifications.

Since its launch, Desu’s ventriculoperitoneal shunts have been successfully implanted in over 20,000 patients. To maintain this success streak, it strives to develop products of the highest standards and offer them to clients at competitive prices without compromising quality. With a mindset of continually enhancing product performance, Desu is an R&D-focused company aiming to boost doctor-patient comfort and minimise surgical and post-op complications.

A significant part of its R&D proficiency is Dr. Sorar, a neurosurgeon actively involved in neurosurgeries, especially for hydrocephalus. His first-hand experiences in implementing shunt systems into patients are pivotal to Desu’s exploration of innovative design elements. Even from a development standpoint, Dr. Sorar’s insights help unlock product functionalities that treat hydrocephalus better than market contemporaries.

For Desu, each shunt implantation is a unique success story of approaching hydrocephalus as a disease that requires timely treatment and surgical procedures that consider the risks of CNS infections. By leveraging Dr. Sorar’s expertise in treating patients and empathy towards neurosurgeons, Desu aims to continually boost its product development initiatives to improve neurosurgery and remain a bridge that links patients to life.