Chris Tihansky Appointed President of Cellvizio Inc.; Company Establishes U.S. Subsidiary

PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Cellvizio Inc., a leader in in vivo cellular imaging, announced today the appointment of Chris Tihansky as its President. Cellvizio Inc. is the U.S. subsidiary of Paris-based Mauna Kea Technologies and develops and markets Cellvizio(R), a fundamentally new endoscopic imaging approach which improves patient care by eliminating the need for unnecessary biopsies and enhances the diagnosis of a broad range of diseases via in vivo cellular imaging.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080213/NYW021 )

The appointment coincides with the company establishing its U.S. operations base in the Philadelphia area.

“Cellvizio is increasing its commercialization efforts in the U.S., and Chris is a great fit for leading this,” said Sacha Loiseau, Ph.D., founder, president and chief executive officer of Mauna Kea. “He has a unique combination of expertise in the medical technology field, including general management, business development, sales, and product development.”

“Cellvizio is an excellent example of a company that has successfully taken a cutting-edge technology from bench top to bedside,” explained Chris. “I am very pleased to be leading our team in the U.S. It is our intention to make Cellvizio a standard of care so that as many patients as possible have access to the advantages this technology offers.”

“The Philadelphia area is a perfect location for us to rapidly build our business,” Chris stated. “It offers ready access to our customer base and a strong talent pool. Additionally, it is increasingly evident that Southeastern Pennsylvania offers a well-developed support infrastructure for emerging med- tech companies.”

Chris has 20 years of experience in the emerging medical technology and healthcare financials services industries. He most recently served as President and CEO of Surgical Services Inc. (SSI), a division of Teleflex Inc. . Chris received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA; a Master of Science Degree in Biomedical Engineering from Drexel University in Philadelphia; and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of San Diego.

About Mauna Kea Technologies:

Mauna Kea Technologies leads the growing in vivo cellular imaging market enabling physicians to visualize, diagnose and treat pathologies that can not be seen using other imaging techniques. Mauna Kea Technologies’ flagship Cellvizio(R) system provides microscopic visualization of mucosal tissue and promises to improve clinical outcomes by increasing the diagnostic yield of existing endoscopic procedures. With over 1000 Cellvizio procedures completed to date, Mauna Kea Technologies is currently focused on the gastroenterology and pulmonology markets. The company plans to expand into other markets in the future. The company also has a distribution agreement with Leica Microsystems to sell products for the Small Animal Imaging market in Europe, the U.S. and Japan. For more information about Mauna Kea Technologies: www.maunakeatech.com

CONTACT: Mark Sahl, Lazar Partners, +1-646-871-8485 or
msahl@lazarpartners.com

Web site: http://www.maunakeatech.com/

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