TORONTO, May 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Biosign Technologies Inc. (TSXV: BIO) (“Biosign”) provided a corporate update today, subsequent to reporting its financial and operating results to SEDAR for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2010. The company’s audited financial statements and Management’s Discussion and Analysis are available at www.sedar.com.
“2010 was a fast-paced, transformative year for the company”, stated Dr. Radu Leca, Founder and CEO of Biosign. “We evolved from having an R&D focus to being a commercially viable entity providing the world’s first ISO-certified online health monitoring system, UFIT®. We obtained marketing clearance in Europe for the addition of blood glucose for our online medical measurement services, launched a comprehensive distribution channel partner program, completed two strategic acquisitions of Cloud Diagnostic and Healthanywhere, listed our stock on the TSX Venture Exchange, and started manufacturing and sales for UFIT. These major accomplishments give Biosign tremendous confidence as we move forward.”
Biosign anticipates strong performance in 2011, driven by a rapidly growing demand for online, intelligent medical measurement applications intended for general, unsupervised use. The company is well-positioned to address this demand with its recently deployed platform (VIMIS) for monitoring common health risks, such as hypertension, arrhythmia, and diabetes.
Product Update
In 2010, Biosign received clearance in the European Union to market an application for online measurement of blood pressure and blood glucose. The UFIT® TEN-20 application is intended for adults interested in monitoring their cardiovascular and metabolic response to diet, exercise, and medication. The company is preparing to present UFIT® TEN-20 this month, at an international symposium on medical measurements and applications. “This conference will allow Biosign to demonstrate how UFIT® monitoring can lower costs by making medical diagnosis and treatment more precise. In addition, we believe that UFIT® will enable a shift of high quality care from hospitals to homes, as well as from doctor to nurse to assistant to patient,” noted Dr. Leca. Biosign anticipates that the UFIT® TEN-20 product will be ready for commercial launch in the second quarter of fiscal 2011.
Regulatory Update
Biosign plans to vastly expand its health monitoring services in a study conducted in collaboration with McMaster University. The study is designed to allow real-time assessment of the system’s real-life performance by regulatory agencies worldwide. This collaboration seeks to develop a standard certification program for devices generating digital health data. Among other things, the study will also help Biosign clarify its immediate sales objectives in the United States. The company plans to seek market clearance for its medical devices in the United States as soon as the changes to the FDA’s medical device clearance program become effective.
Marketing Update
Biosign will continue to support the momentum gained by its distributors in Canada and the Middle East while improving its sales network in European medical markets, particularly in Britain, Germany, France, and Italy. Biosign plans to run a comprehensive pilot with a network of US hospitals to test whether UFIT home monitoring reduces the hospital readmission rate. The company will also pursue partnerships to embed UFIT into the fast growing healthcare trends involving crowd-sourcing, social-media, and distributed-expertise. On another track, Biosign will engage health benefit providers that have a sizable interest in evaluating the safety and efficacy of their clients’ health plans.
Management Update
Biosign has recently announced the addition of Colley Clarke to its management team as interim Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Clarke has served as CFO of several publicly traded companies. His remarkable financial and operational experience will enable Biosign to efficiently execute its ambitious marketing plan. The company is currently recruiting executives for top management positions and expects to nominate a director shortly. Biosign would like to recognize the accomplishments of Peter Tassiopoulos, Scott Worthington, and former Senator Alfonse D’Amato for their contributions to the company.
Financial Outlook:
As of December 31, 2010, Biosign had cash and cash equivalents of almost $3 million, an increase of over $2 million compared to December 31, 2009. The company also improved its balance sheet in 2010 by increasing assets to $9.8 million, a nearly tenfold increase from 2009. Biosign expects to complete its manufacturing ramp-up by the third quarter of 2011
“We expect to earn meaningful multi-million dollar product revenues from the sales of UFIT in 2011,” stated Mr. Colley Clarke, Biosign’s CFO. “We anticipate providing visibility regarding our commercial sales expectations and revenue projections in future quarters as we gain greater insight on the market adoption of our products.”
Biosign expects to keep its annual cash expenditures relatively flat over the next two years, although it is anticipated that quarterly fluctuations of its expenses will occur with certain marketing and manufacturing activities. “Based on committed distributor revenue and our long-range financial projections, we do not plan to raise significant capital to fund existing operations at this time. However, we will be opportunistic and access the capital markets if there are compelling reasons that facilitate Biosign’s growth.” noted Mr. Clarke.
About Biosign Technologies Inc.
Biosign Technologies Inc. (TSXV: BIO) provides biomedical systems. Key applications include intelligent systems for noninvasive monitoring of common health risks associated with blood pressure, glucose, and medication. The core technology combines measurement, analysis, and rapid knowledge formation to support health monitoring across global markets. The UFIT® medical device technology powers quality data collection and analytics for clinical diagnostics, self-care, wellness, disease state evaluation & management, and remote patient monitoring. For more information on Biosign, please visit www.biosign.com
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements, without limitation, may contain the words believes, expects, anticipates, estimates, intends, plans, or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. They involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions and Biosign’s actual results could differ materially from those anticipated. Forward looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made, and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. In the context of any forward-looking information please refer to risk factors detailed in, as well as other information contained in, Biosign’s filings with Canadian securities regulators (www.sedar.com).
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
SOURCE Biosign Technologies Inc.