News Release

Opiate withdrawal treatment documents for Phase IIa accepted for review

Date: Jan 22, 2002

TSX Venture Exchange Trading Symbol: WXI
http://www.wextech.ca
E-mail: wex@wextech.ca

International Wex Technologies Inc. (the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has received the appropriate notification from Canada's Health Products and Food Branch (HPFB) that its submission for Phase IIa clinical trial for opiate withdrawal treatment has been received.

This Phase IIa clinical trial will be a double-blind, placebo-controlled, fixed repeated-dose efficacy and safety study of tetrodotoxin (Tetrodin(tm)) in opiate withdrawal patients. The trial will be conducted at Ventana Clinical Research Corporation's facility in Toronto. A total of 16 patients will be recruited and will last for a period of 12 weeks. The objective of the trial is to evaluate Tetrodin's efficacy and safety in assisting in opiate withdrawal.

According to current regulations, there is a 30 day default period for the HPFB to review the application. Pursuant to our proposed study protocol being accepted, the Company will be granted permission to initiate this study after during the month of February 2002.

In the area of neuro-bioscience, the Company is focusing on the fields of pain management, drug addiction treatment and anaesthesia. The Company is developing products that contain a sodium channel blocking compound and derivatives extracted from natural organic substance using its proprietary manufacturing technology.

For additional information on our products, view the Company website at http://www.wextech.ca or call Howard Milne, V.P. Corporate Communications, at 604-683-8880 or 1-800-722-7549.

Per: Donna Shum, Corporate Secretary

The Canadian Venture Stock Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the content of this News Release.