SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 16, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Medicines360, a women’s health innovation organization with a mission to be a catalyst for change, today announced that it has acquired global licensing rights to PeriPeach, an investigational medical device designed to prevent severe perineal tears during birth, from Fruits of Labor, Inc. PeriPeach will now advance through the 360 Innovation Hub, Medicines360’s platform for accelerating transformative women’s health solutions.

PeriPeach is designed to address one of the most preventable maternal injuries in childbirth: obstetric anal sphincter injuries (OASIS), also known as severe perineal tears. During birth, the pelvic floor muscles stretch to three times their original size.ⁱ A majority of first-time mothers – up to 90% - experience tears during vaginal birth, with up to 70% of mothers sustaining tears in subsequent births.ⁱⁱ Advanced imaging shows that nearly one in five women sustain significant injuries to the deep pelvic floor muscles that support the bladder, uterus, and rectum. These injuries may not heal and can lead to lifelong pelvic floor disorders—underscoring the urgent need to prevent severe tears.

Complications associated with OASIS include wound complications such as infection or poor healing, chronic pain, sexual dysfunction, and the most devastating complication to a patient’s quality of life: fecal incontinence.ⁱⁱⁱ Severe tears are also linked to higher rates of postpartum depression^iv and post-traumatic stress disorder. In fact, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recommends offering cesarean deliveries for those with a history of OASIS.^v PeriPeach is a novel device designed to transform the standard of care for childbirth, preventing severe perineal tears before they start.

“We are excited to welcome PeriPeach into our 360 Innovation Hub and expand our portfolio with a solution that directly targets one of the most serious and preventable maternal injuries: obstetric anal sphincter injuries (OASIS). With PeriPeach, our goal is to reduce the risk of severe perineal tears, shorten recovery, and protect mothers from long-term consequences, ultimately improving quality of life for women everywhere. We are incorporating innovation at every stage of development and planning for access from day one,” said Dr. Andrea Olariu, CEO, Medicines360.

PeriPeach, invented by gynecologist Dr. Tess Kim, has been recognized for innovation as a recipient of the 2023 Harvard Innovation Labs Social Impact Fellowship Fund and Allston Venture Fund and most recently as a winner of the 2025 Harvard President’s Innovation Challenge Award.

"I’m thrilled that PeriPeach is joining Medicine360’s Innovation Hub portfolio. I’ve been a huge fan of Medicines360 since I was a medical student. We share a deep commitment to ensuring that innovation and equity go hand in hand,” said Dr. Kim.

Each year, more than 3.6 million women in the US and 140 million worldwide give birth^vi, yet preventable childbirth injuries remain a major driver of long-term pelvic floor disorders. PeriPeach aims to change that.

Medicines360’s groundbreaking 360 Innovation Hub is transforming ideas into life-changing products for women. Building upon the organization’s impact and decades of experience ushering complex products to market, the Innovation Hub pioneers solutions with the potential to transform women’s health while delivering meaningful impact.

PeriPeach is an investigational device and is not cleared for sale or use in the US or outside the US.

For more information about Medicines360 and the 360 Innovation Hub, visit: www.medicines360.org.

About Medicines360
Medicines360 is a women’s health innovation organization with a mission to be a catalyst for change. We are fearless in our pursuit of creative approaches to solving consequential women's health issues and transforming novel ideas into life-changing products that improve the lives of all women.

About Fruits of Labor, Inc.
Fruits of Labor, Inc., founded by Dr. Tess Kim, is a medical device company improving the comfort and care of obstetrics and gynecology through patient-centered innovation. We focus on reducing pain in gynecologic procedures, empowering patients during childbirth, and redesigning surgical instruments to better serve both patients and the surgeons who care for them.

Media Contact:
Heidi Glasser
Medicines360
415-951-8700
hglasser@medicines360.org

_____________________________
ⁱ _{John O. L. DeLancey, Mariana Masteling, Fernanda Pipitone, Jennifer LaCross, Sara Mastrovito, and James A. Ashton‑Miller, Pelvic floor injury during vaginal birth is life‑altering and preventable: What can we do about it?, American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology 230, Supplement 4 (March 2024): [article], https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2023.11.1253}

ⁱⁱ _{Rebecca Man, Victoria Hodgetts Morton, R. Katie Morris, Childbirth-related perineal trauma and its complications: prevalence, risk factors and management, Obstetrics, Gynaecology & Reproductive Medicine, Volume 34, Issue 9, 2024.}

ⁱⁱⁱ _{Man et al., 2024.}

^iv _{Carolyn W. Swenson, Julia A. DePorre, Jessica K. Haefner, Mitchell B. Berger, and Dee E. Fenner, Postpartum Depression Screening and Pelvic Floor Symptoms Among Women Referred to a Specialty Postpartum Perineal Clinic, American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology 218, no. 3 (March 2018): 335.e1–335.e6,. PMCID: PMC5834372. PMID: 29229409.}

^v _{Committee on Practice Bulletins—Obstetrics, Cichowski, Sara, and Rogers, Rebecca, Prevention and Management of Obstetric Lacerations at Vaginal Delivery, ACOG Practice Bulletin No. 198, Obstetrics & Gynecology 132, no. 3 (September 2018): e87–e102,https://doi.org/10.1097/AOG.0000000000002841}

^vi _{https://www.who.int/health-topics/maternal-health#tab=tab_1, accessed March 2025.}