Uncanny connections

Umesh Patel meets Purdue engineering student who was one of the first infants to be treated with SIS

In February 2022, Umesh Patel was awarded the 2021 IDE Outstanding Alumni Award from Purdue University’s School of Engineering Education. Umesh, the president of Cook Biotech, was recognized for the contributions he has made to the biomedical engineering field during the last 30 years.

About Umesh

Umesh has received all three of his degrees from Purdue University. He earned a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary engineering studies in 1986, his master’s degree in electrical engineering in 1988, and his PhD in industrial engineering in 1995.

As graduate students, Umesh and Mike Hiles, the current vice president and chief science officer for Cook Biotech, played instrumental roles in the discovery and research into the regenerative properties of porcine small intestinal submucosa (SIS). This work included processing and designing prototype devices and getting SIS on the market. To date, Patel has over 50 patents to his credit.

Umesh and Mike were Cook Biotech’s first employees when the company was established and began using SIS to create medical devices in 1995. Currently, Cook Biotech’s products are used in human and animal patients to treat hernias, wounds, nerve damage, and various other conditions.

Umesh began his time at Cook Biotech as the operations manager. In 2000, he became vice president of development and engineering and was named vice president and general manager for the company in 2015. In 2017, he was promoted to his current role as president of Cook Biotech.

 An uncanny connection

 On February 21, Umesh was set to be recognized as an outstanding Purdue University engineering education alumnus. That afternoon, he met with a group of student awardees. It was while Umesh was describing how SIS works that the product began to ring a bell for student Logan Noster, who graduated from Purdue with a degree in multidisciplinary engineering in May.

Logan was born with an omphalocele, which means that his liver was outside of his body when he was born. As it would turn out, Logan was one of the first infants to be treated with SIS to close the hernia located on his abdomen. Having the opportunity to meet the engineer behind this technology was a full circle moment for all involved.

To watch a video about their connection, click here.

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