Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Azam Anwar.
Cardiologist, innovative inventor, and passionate entrepreneur, Dr. Anwar has used his knowledge and expertise to make meaningful, long-term contributions to the field of medicine and patient care for several decades.
His passion for medicine began as a teenager while working in a Kansas City hospital in the laundry service and later as an ECG technician. His passion for medicine grew stronger, driving him to take a fast track through medical school at the University of Missouri, where he graduated with his BA/MD, with honors, at just 24 years old.
Upon graduation, Dr. Anwar relocated to Dallas, Texas where he completed his internship and residency in Internal Medicine at Baylor University Medical Center. Subsequently, he tackled two fellowships – General Cardiology at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio and a Senior Fellowship in Interventional Cardiology at the San Francisco Heart Institute – ultimately becoming Board Certified in Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Diseases and Interventional Cardiology and holding unrestricted medical licenses in Texas and California.
Dr. Anwar’s passion for medicine and knack for innovative entrepreneurship led to striking accomplishments in both arenas. In 1989, when stents were in an infancy stage of development worldwide, he partnered with a small team and formed the AVE Company in San Francisco to create the leading coronary stent in the world at the time. After an IPO, AVE was bought out by Medtronic, the world’s largest medical device company. Additionally, he has developed several other devices, including a vascular-anastomosis device and a leveraged contrast injector.
In 1990, Dr. Anwar moved back to Dallas to practice Interventional Cardiology. During his 20 year plus tenure at Baylor, Dallas he became a go-to authority in cardiology performing over 10,000 procedures in his career and engaged in teaching (medical students, residents and fellows) and clinical research activities. Dr. Anwar started an Interventional Cardiology Fellowship at Baylor to train others in his field. This program continues to date and produces outstanding cardiologists.
On the business side, he led his independent cardiology practice at HeartPlace to national prominence and was instrumental in the founding the Baylor Heart and Vascular Hospital, which became one of the best heart hospitals in the nation.
A few years ago Dr. Anwar suffered from a serious skin infection. He realized that there was a need for cleansers that were designed to manage compromised and at risk skin. He partnered with world renowned dermatologists to invent the first sodium hypochlorite wash, a product which is tough on microbes and easy on the skin. This innovation has been awarded several patents worldwide and has led to the formation of a successful company, CLn Skin Care by TopMD. The CLn products can reduce the need for antibiotics and steroids in many instances. Additionally, this innovation has proven that many serious skin ailments can be managed with properly designed cleansing agents. To date over 100,000 patients have benefited from CLn.
When Dr. Anwar isn’t solving complex medical problems, forming new ventures, or mulling over his next innovation, he’s enjoying time with his wife and four children in Dallas and San Diego.
Has it been a smooth road?
Compared to device development work that I have done in the past, this was a rather pleasant experience. Since I suffered from a skin infection myself, I was very aware of what patients go through and the relevance was greater. Also, I spent time with patients in our feasibility study and learned about the impact of eczema and skin infections; issues such as sleepless nights, bullying, and the cost of drawers of in-effective medications. Seeing these children and families benefit from our invention was incredibly inspiring and energizing and gave our team greater purpose to bring the CLn products to market.
Struggles are always there with new ventures, mostly in the amount of focus and time needed, but when you see the rewards…it becomes less difficult. And the positive stories about CLn keep coming: Autry spent time in the hospital every couple of months, but not once since our product was initiated. Carson’s father told us how his son was able to face the kids at school after being bullied in the past. And Andon’s family never considered a beach vacation until CLn. When you see real life benefits, the business struggles become smaller.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the CLn® Skin Care story. Tell us more about the business.
Dr. Azam Anwar, suffered from a serious bacterial staph skin infection. He was urgently treated with antibiotics and prescribed medicated baths twice per week as a preventive measure.
The baths were drying, impractical, and tough to stay consistent with. Medicated baths are recommended for these infections, but the idea of bathing in diluted bleach baths tends to instill fear in patients, especially parents of pediatric patients.
Dr. Anwar, a lifelong inventor, was inspired by his experience and sought to find a better solution to cleansing compromised skin and infection-prone skin. In collaboration with world-class scientists and dermatologists, he discovered how to formulate surfactants (soaps) and sodium hypochlorite—the ingredient that makes medicated baths effective— to harness sodium hypochlorite’s anti-microbial, anti- inflammatory and anti-aging properties without drying or irritation.
Based on this discovery, CLn (pronounced “Clean”) cleansers were invented. CLn is a new class of non-prescription therapeutic skin cleansers that are easy on the skin but tough on microbes.
The patented CLn cleansers are easy to use, safe for ages six months and older, and have been proven effective in two clinical trials. Supported by a medical board of internationally-recognized dermatologists, CLn is now recommended by thousands of doctors in the US and internationally as an excellent therapeutic cleansing option for a wide range of skin conditions. To date over 100,000 patients have benefited from CLn.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
People are getting more engaged with their healthcare. They are researching options on the internet prior to going to the doctor and searching social channels to find out what their friends and family are recommending. The general trend we have seen across the board is that people are making the health of their skin a priority. Healthy skin is beautiful skin.
Contact Info:
- Address: 8200 Brookriver Dr, Dallas, TX 75247
- Website: CLnWash.com
- Phone: (877) 992-7425
- Email: support@CLnWash.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/clnskincare
- Facebook: facebook.com/clnskincare
- Twitter: twitter.com/clnskincare
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