CATHCOAT Receives EFRO Oost Funding

Co-funded by the European Union. CATHCOAT receives financial support from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF, in Dutch EFRO) through Programma EFRO 2021–2027 Oost-Nederland, under its test and demonstration scheme.

Project goal

CATHCOAT demonstrates and validates central venous catheters (CVCs) with a LipoCoat® coating in an intensive care setting. The coating is a nanothin phospholipid layer designed to reduce the adhesion of proteins and bacteria on the catheter surface, without antibiotics or biocides. The project takes the coating from earlier studies into the hospital.

Why catheters

CVCs are among the most widely used medical devices in intensive care. The Dutch study registry cites a background risk of CVC-related bloodstream infection on the ICU of 2.1 to 8.7 per 1,000 catheter days. CATHCOAT studies a passive coating approach that does not rely on antibiotics.

Partners in the study

• Lipocoat: coating technology and study sponsor.
• University of Twente: laboratory characterization of the coating and bioburden analysis.
• Medisch Spectrum Twente (MST), Enschede: clinical partner and only study site.
• Labmicta: microbiological analysis of the removed catheters.

First-in-human study

The clinical part of CATHCOAT is registered in the Dutch research registry as NL-OMON61416. The key design facts:

• Design: single-arm, open-label, first-in-human interventional study.
• Participants: 25 adult ICU patients who need a CVC for at least 5 days and give written informed consent.
• Device: coated double-lumen CVC, placed under ultrasound guidance in the internal jugular or subclavian vein, in place for up to 29 days.
• Primary endpoint: safety (adverse events).
• Secondary endpoints: usability, bioburden on removed catheters and laboratory characterization of the coating.
• Follow-up: four months per patient.
• Ethics: approved under the Dutch WMO (CCMO) on 29 July 2026.

Results

The study has not reported results yet. Findings will be published on this page once the analysis is complete.

About the funding program

Programma EFRO 2021–2027 Oost-Nederland is an innovation and cooperation program for small and medium-sized enterprises. It is funded by the European Union, the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate, and the provinces of Gelderland and Overijssel. Its test and demonstration projects aim to speed up the market introduction of products and services. More information is available at efro-oost.eu.