Curative Health Services Joins Actor Stephen Furst and American Diabetes Association to Promote Diabetes Awareness Alert on March 26.

Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers

MINNEAPOLIS--(BW HealthWire)--March 15, 2002

Curative Health Services (Nasdaq:CURE) is wondering what it will take for the five million Americans with undiagnosed diabetes to hear the wake up call when it comes to their health.

Actor Stephen Furst - possibly better known for his role as Flounder in the movie National Lampoon's Animal House than for having diabetes - is working with Curative, a leading disease management company, and the American Diabetes Association (ADA) to make sure others get the wake up call sooner than he did by promoting Diabetes Alert Day on March 26.

Furst - whose father died from diabetes-related complications - was diagnosed with diabetes at age 17, but it took him years to begin an exercise and nutrition program. He was only prompted to do so when he nearly lost part of his left foot due to a complication of diabetes called neuropathy.

"I had no idea how serious my condition was," said Furst. "I thought my diabetes was just an annoyance, not a genuine threat to my health. Eventually, I landed myself in the hospital with a serious foot infection that began with a blister I never felt."

According to the ADA, about 60 to 70 percent of people with diabetes have mild to severe forms of diabetic nerve damage, called neuropathy. Even more alarming is that diabetes is the most frequent cause of non-traumatic lower limb amputations. The ADA states that the risk of a leg amputation is 15 to 40 times greater for a person with diabetes.

"People with neuropathy often lose the protective sensation that signals pain and are unable to feel if they step on something sharp or have a blister," said Dr. Maria Dill, Regional Medical Director for Curative Health Services and Medical Director at the Valley Baptist Wound Care Center in Harlingen, Texas. "Left untreated, a minor injury like a small cut can become a serious wound that may result in amputation."

Proper foot care is a simple way to help prevent or lessen the likelihood of injuries, sores and infections. The ADA urges the following basic steps for proper foot care:

-- Wear closed-toe shoes that fit properly at all times; never walk barefoot

-- Avoid exposing feet to extreme temperatures

-- Properly trim toenails and gently round corners with an emery board or
pumice stone

-- Visit a physician or podiatrist regularly to care for corns and calluses

-- Examine feet daily and use a mirror to inspect the soles

Regular testing for neuropathy during office visits by patients' physicians or clinical staff can help identify patients at risk for developing neuropathy.

With diabetes education and testing, warning signs that might otherwise be missed or explained away can be detected, taken seriously and evaluated. The result, says the ADA, is that the 56,200 Americans who annually experience diabetes-related amputations may be reduced by 50 percent.

More than 100 Curative-managed Wound Care Centers nationwide offer comprehensive wound treatment for patients with nonhealing wounds. For more information about the comprehensive treatment available at Wound Care Centers, call 1-800-991-HEAL or visit www.curative.com. The ADA has prepared a short online quiz to raise greater awareness about diabetes risk factors at www.diabetes.org/ada/risktest.asp.

About Curative Health Services

Curative Health Services (CURE) delivers superior clinical outcomes and unmatched patient satisfaction for patients experiencing serious medical conditions through two unique business units.

Curative's Specialty Pharmacy Services (SPS) business unit provides patient-centric services that facilitate the health care management process, and provides related pharmacy products for chronic disease states such as Hemophilia. These services are provided directly to patients and caregivers by community-based representatives and pharmacies.

Curative Health Services' Specialty Healthcare Services (SHS) business unit is the undisputed industry leader in chronic wound care management, consistently achieving an outcome success rate of more than 80 percent, more than twice the industry average. Curative provides a broad continuum of services to health care providers through a nationwide network. This national network of more than 100 hospital-based Wound Care Center programs, has offered comprehensive treatment to over 300,000 patients, achieving more than a 95 percent patient satisfaction rate.

For more information, visit www.curative.com