Smith & Nephew Completes Acquisition of the Assets of Nucryst Pharmaceuticals Corp.

HULL, England and FT. SASKATCHEWAN, Canada, December 22 - The Advanced Wound Management division of Smith & Nephew plc (LSE: SN;
NYSE: SNN), announced today that its affiliates have completed the
acquisition of substantially all of the assets of Nucryst Pharmaceuticals
Corp. ("Nucryst") (Nasdaq: NCST; TSX: NCS). The acquisition includes the
manufacturing assets from Nucryst's Fort Saskatchewan, Canada operations and
the intellectual property estate.

Since 2001, Smith & Nephew has held exclusive license for the sale of the
ACTICOAT(TM) dressing portfolio, manufactured at the Ft. Saskatchewan site.
This acquisition gives Advanced Wound Management full control over all the
intellectual property rights, manufacturing and assets relating to the
nanocrystalline silver technology that is incorporated in ACTICOAT, which is
the second largest brand in the Smith & Nephew Advanced Wound Management
product portfolio.

"The ACTICOAT dressings are the only products on the market using the
proprietary antimicrobial nanocrystalline silver technology known as
SILCRYST(TM). Acquiring this technology and the manufacturing capabilities
behind it underlines our commitment to bring clinicians and patients the most
advanced solutions for their wound care needs," said Roger Teasdale,
President, Advanced Wound Management.

    Enquiries

    Investors
    Liz Hewitt                              Tel: +44(0)20-7401-7646
    Smith & Nephew
    Group Director Corporate Affairs

    Phil Cowdy                              Tel: +44(0)20-7401-7646
    Smith & Nephew
    Director - Investor Relations

    Other Inquiries
    Roger Teasdale                          Tel: +44(0)14-8267-3905
    President, Advanced Wound Management

    Media
    Jon Coles                               Tel: +44(0)20-7404 5959
    Brunswick - London

    Katie Cralle                            Tel: +1(212)-333-3810
    Brunswick - New York

About Us

Smith & Nephew is a global medical technology business, specialising in
Orthopaedics, including Reconstruction, Trauma and Clinical Therapies;
Endoscopy and Advanced Wound Management. Smith & Nephew is a global leader in
arthroscopy and advanced wound management and is one of the leading global
orthopaedics companies.

Smith & Nephew is dedicated to helping improve people's lives. The
Company prides itself on the strength of its relationships with its surgeons
and professional healthcare customers, with whom its name is synonymous with
high standards of performance, innovation and trust. The Company operates in
32 countries around the world. Annual sales in 2008 were nearly US$3.8
billion.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain "forward-looking statements" within
the meaning of the US Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In
particular, statements regarding expected revenue growth and trading margins
discussed under "Outlook" are forward-looking statements as are discussions
of our product pipeline. These statements, as well as the phrases "aim",
"plan", "intend", "anticipate", "well-placed", "believe", "estimate",
"expect", "target", "consider" and similar expressions, are generally
intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking
statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important
factors (including, but not limited to, the outcome of litigation, claims and
regulatory approvals) that could cause the actual results, performance or
achievements of Smith & Nephew, or industry results, to differ materially
from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by
such forward-looking statements. Please refer to the documents that Smith &
Nephew has filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission under the
U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including Smith & Nephew's
most recent annual report on Form 20F, for a discussion of certain of these
factors.

All forward-looking statements in this press release are based on
information available to Smith & Nephew as of the date hereof. All written or
oral forward-looking statements attributable to Smith & Nephew or any person
acting on behalf of Smith & Nephew are expressly qualified in their entirety
by the foregoing. Smith & Nephew does not undertake any obligation to update
or revise any forward-looking statement contained herein to reflect any
change in Smith & Nephew's expectation with regard thereto or any change in
events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.

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Investors: Liz Hewitt, Group Director Corporate Affairs, Smith & Nephew, +44-(0)-20-7401-7646, or Phil Cowdy, Director - Investor Relations, Smith & Nephew, +44-(0)-20-7401-7646; Other Inquiries: Roger Teasdale, President, Advanced Wound Management, +44-(0)-14-8267-3905; Media: Jon Coles, Brunswick - London, +44-(0)-20-7404-5959, or Katie Cralle, Brunswick - New York, +1-212-333-3810