CSL Behring announced it will hold its next GameFaces™ challenge from April 14 through July 7, 2009. GameFaces is a family-oriented, online initiative for people with hemophilia A. The program is designed to encourage real-life physical activity through a series of customized challenges based on the individual’s age, disease severity and current level of physical activity.
The next challenge, called "Mix It Up," encourages kids with hemophilia A to participate in multiple outdoor activities, such as baseball, tennis and golf, as well as indoor activities, including playing a physically active video game like the Nintendo® Wii®. These challenges are designed to connect members of the hemophilia community. Participants can perform them on their own or with family and friends.
"The GamesFaces challenges have been a success in bringing together members of the hemophilia community, by promoting the type of activity that helps people with hemophilia A develop a healthy and safe lifestyle," said Garrett E. Bergman, M.D., Senior Director, Medical Affairs, U.S. Commercial Operations at CSL Behring. "We are thrilled to launch this latest challenge, as daily physical activity is critical for keeping muscles healthy and joints strong."
Participants can log on to the program website at www.HFSGameFaces.com, create their GameFaces character (if they haven’t already done so) and begin the next challenge on Tuesday, April 14. Participants are asked to complete all physical activities before the end of the challenge interval. They can track their progress at the website.
At the conclusion of the challenge period, those who have completed "Mix It Up" will be entered into a drawing to win a Nintendo Wii game console. Nintendo Wii has been recognized as the next generation of video games and is known to inspire physical activity through games that require movement.
CSL Behring, provider of the hemophilia treatment Helixate® FS (Antihemophilic Factor, Recombinant), developed GameFaces to inspire hemophilia A patients to participate in physical activities and also to allow them to feel connected to other patients with this serious bleeding disorder.
"We appreciate CSL Behring’s commitment to our children and the hemophilia community by providing programs that encourage health, wellness and interaction with peers,” said Rhonda Boni-Burden, mother of Alex, a 14-year-old boy with severe hemophilia A. "A program like GameFaces enables our children to build their self-esteem through friendly-competition, while helping them to manage these bleeding disorders.”
Children under 18 must have a parent’s permission to participate in the latest GameFaces challenge.
"Nintendo" and "Wii" are registered trademarks of Nintendo of America Inc.
About Hemophilia
Hemophilia is an inherited bleeding disorder characterized by prolonged or spontaneous bleeding, especially into the muscles, joints, or internal organs. About 15,000 Americans have hemophilia. The disease is caused by deficient or defective blood coagulation proteins known as factor VIII or factor IX. The most common form of the disease is hemophilia A, or classic hemophilia, in which the clotting factor VIII is either deficient or defective. Hemophilia B is characterized by deficient or defective factor IX.
About Helixate FS
Helixate FS is a recombinant factor VIII product indicated for the treatment of hemophilia A that offers convenient administration with a 2.5-mL volume diluent; no available factor VIII product has a smaller diluent size. The 2000 vial size requires a 5.0 mL volume diluent.
No albumin is used in the formulation or purification of Helixate FS, and its manufacture includes a solvent/detergent viral inactivation step. The most frequently reported adverse events were local injection site reactions, dizziness, and rash. Known intolerance or allergic reactions to constituents of the preparation is a contraindication to the use of Helixate FS. Known hypersensitivity to mouse or hamster protein may be a contraindication to the use of Helixate FS. In 2006, the FDA gave approval for Helixate FS to be stored at room temperature (up to 25°C, 77°F) for three months. The storage guidelines for the hemophilia treatment provide users with greater flexibility and simplify storage options.
Helixate® FS is manufactured by Bayer HealthCare LLC for CSL Behring LLC.
About CSL Behring
CSL Behring is a global leader in the plasma protein biotherapeutics industry. Passionate about improving the quality of patients' lives, CSL Behring manufactures and markets a range of safe and effective plasma-derived and recombinant products and related services. The company's therapies are used in the treatment of immune deficiency disorders, hemophilia, von Willebrand disease, other bleeding disorders and inherited emphysema. Other products are used for the prevention of hemolytic diseases in the newborn, in cardiac surgery, organ transplantation and in the treatment of burns. The company also operates one of the world's largest plasma collection networks, ZLB Plasma. CSL Behring is a subsidiary of CSL Limited, a biopharmaceutical company with headquarters in Melbourne, Australia. For more information, visit www.cslbehring.com.
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CSL Behring Contact:
Greg Healy
Senior Manager, Public Relations & Communications, U.S. Commercial Operations
610-878-4841
Greg.Healy@cslbehring.com