Why FLOWASSIST Was Created: The Science Behind Solving Ostomy Leakage
For many clinicians, the persistent challenge of preventing leakage and protecting peristomal skin is all too familiar. Despite decades of product development, a significant proportion of ostomates still experience recurring issues – leakage, skin irritation, reduced wear time, and repeated appliance changes that add both emotional and financial strain.
FLOWASSIST, Ostoform’s novel ostomy appliance technology, was born from one critical question:
What if the root cause of leakage isn’t just the stoma… but the way traditional appliances handle moisture?
This question emerged during a unique research journey in a Stanford-affiliated medical innovation program – where engineering met clinical reality.
A Firsthand Look at the Problem
During the program, Dr. Kevin Kelleher, now Ostoform’s CEO and Co-Founder, spent extensive time embedded in clinical settings. Shadowing stoma nurses and observing routine patient appointments provided something textbooks often overlook: raw, unfiltered insight into the daily struggles of ostomates.
One pattern quickly stood out.
Despite best-practice fitting and diligent patient care, many appliances were failing for the same reason – excess moisture around the stoma causing hydrocolloid erosion.
Clinicians consistently noted:
- Skin underneath the hydrocolloid becoming soft, irritated, and saturated
- Output pooling on the skin before reaching the pouch
- Leaks occurring not because of poor technique, but because the hydrocolloid simply could not cope with liquid output
This was not a niche problem. It was systemic.
The Engineering Perspective: A New Way to Think About Leakage
Armed with a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering, Kevin began to map the issue through an engineering lens. Traditional ostomy appliances are designed with broad absorbency, intended to manage moisture. But when it comes to stoma output, especially liquid output, this can be counterproductive:
- The hydrocolloid absorbs more output than it can handle
- Absorption leads to swelling and breakdown
- Once the hydrocolloid erodes, the appliance fails
- Leakage becomes inevitable
This cycle revealed a fundamental gap between how ostomy products were designed and how stoma output behaves in real life.
What if, instead of allowing the hydrocolloid to absorb too much output, the appliance could limit excessive absorption and redirect moisture away from the skin before it causes damage?
That question sparked the first sketches of a radically new concept: assisted flow.
The Breakthrough: Assisted Flow Technology
After months of research and prototyping, the team developed a unique component that could be integrated into an ostomy appliance to manage moisture more intelligently.
FLOWASSIST combines:
- Targeted absorbency, to gently wick and buffer small amounts of moisture
- Directed flow pathways, to guide the bulk of stoma output away from the skin and into the pouch
This dual-action approach protects vulnerable adhesive regions from over-absorption while preventing liquid output from sitting against the skin.
Clinicians trialing early prototypes reported:
- Markedly reduced adhesive moisture
- Few incidents of hydrocolloid breakdown
- Significant improvement in peristomal skin condition
It wasn’t just a better appliance. It was a new category of ostomy protection.
From Idea to Evidence: Clinical Research That Matters
The type of output from your stoma plays a big role in ostomy bag leakage:
Step 4: Use Preventative Products – Not Just Emergency Fixes
The transition from prototype to product involved years of testing, iterative development, and clinical trials. Ostoform’s research, now published in multiple peer-reviewed journals, showed that the FLOWASSIST technology:
- Reduces hydrocolloid erosion, one of the root causes of leakage
- Improves peristomal skin integrity
- Increases wear time, supporting both comfort and cost-effective care
These findings confirmed what clinicians had hoped for: a technology that prevents problems rather than simply responding to them.
FLOWASSIST Today: A Growing Platform of Solutions
While the FLOWASSIST Seal was the first product to bring assisted flow technology to life, it was only the beginning.
Today, FLOWASSIST powers a broadening range of solutions – including the FLOWASSIST 2-Piece Pouch, enabling clinicians to offer assisted flow within a complete pouching system. This gives patients and clinicians flexibility, ensuring the benefits of assisted flow can be integrated across different appliance configurations, stoma types, and preferences.
Whether used as a seal or a full pouching system, the FLOWASSIST platform delivers the same key advantage: Managing moisture intelligently to protect hydrocolloid integrity, reduce leakage, and support healthier skin.
Why FLOWASSIST Matters for Clinicians Today
For stoma care nurses and other clinicians, FLOWASSIST offers three key benefits:
- Healthier Peristomal Skin: Minimizing unnecessary moisture at the wafer helps break the cycle of irritation, inflammation, and erosion.
- Fewer Leaks, Greater Confidence: By preventing over-absorption and hydrocolloid breakdown, FLOWASSIST supports a more secure and predictable seal.
- Lower Overall Cost of Care: Improved wear time, fewer emergency appliance changes, and healthier skin all contribute to more efficient and comfortable patient care.
A Solution Rooted in Real Clinical Challenges
FLOWASSIST wasn’t created in a lab in isolation. It was shaped by clinicians, inspired by patients, and engineers with a single objective: To address the root cause of leakage and protect peristomal skin in a way that was not previously possible.
Today, FLOWASSIST continues to evolve – from seals to full pouching systems – but its origin remains the same: an engineer, a clinical problem, and a determination to make life better for ostomates.
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