BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 24, 2006--CardioFocus, Inc., a privately held company focused on developing and commercializing catheter products for the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AFib), announced today it has raised a $21.5 million Series C round to propel the performance of a U.S. pivotal trial for its endoscopically-guided catheter ablation system. H.I.G. Ventures and KBL Healthcare Ventures led the $21.5 million round, joined by new investors Accuitive Medical Ventures and The Aurora Funds, as well as existing investors Oxford Bioscience Partners and SV Life Sciences.
“We are pleased to have attracted such an accomplished group of seasoned medical device investors,” said Stephen Sagon, Chief Executive Officer of CardioFocus. “As we move into this next phase of clinical trials, we will certainly benefit from their guidance and expertise in the field.”
Triggered by rapidly firing stimuli or premature beats arising from within the pulmonary veins, AFib is the most common cardiac arrhythmia affecting approximately 2.3 million people in the U.S. and 4.5 million people in the developed world. Patients suffering from AFib have a severely reduced quality of life and face significantly higher risk of stroke, heart failure and death. Drug treatment has been proven ineffective in as little as six months and in more than fifty percent of patients.
“The effective catheter treatment of AFib is one of the single biggest unmet needs in the field of cardiology, representing a $2 billion market opportunity,” said Dr. Bruce Robertson, Managing Director of H.I.G. Ventures. “CardioFocus has developed a novel device for treating this debilitating condition. The company’s management team has significant experience in the field of electrophysiology, and we believe their system will greatly improve the lives of those who suffer from AFib.”
CardioFocus’ patented endoscope, catheter and sheath technology uses adjustable arcs of light energy that can be optimally shaped and individually targeted to each vein’s anatomy. The CardioFocus catheter can visualize and isolate pulmonary veins, essential for the treatment of AFib, in a procedure expected to take less than two hours, unlike competitive RF energy procedures that can take up to six hours, even in the most experienced hands. To date, the company has successfully completed more than 20 patients of an ongoing feasibility study with excellent acute and chronic results. New abstracts on the company’s clinical progress will be presented at the annual meeting of the Heart Rhythm Society, May 17-20 in Boston.
“The CardioFocus ablation procedure promises superior efficacy and safety in comparison to competitive devices,” said Dr. Marlene Krauss, Managing Director and co-founder KBL Healthcare Ventures. “The integral endoscopic visualization gives a remarkable view of the area to be treated and, as a result, will enable a higher cure rate with fewer complications. In addition, the procedure is less complicated and time consuming, which will aid in the adoption by a broader spectrum of electrophysiologists.”
As a result of the financing, Bruce Robertson, PhD, Managing Director for H.I.G. Ventures, Marlene Krauss, MD, Managing Director and co-founder of KBL Heathcare Ventures, Chris Kroeger, MD, Principal for The Aurora Funds, and Charles Larsen, Managing Director for Accuitive Medical Ventures, will take seats on the CardioFocus board.
About CardioFocus, Inc.
CardioFocus, Inc. is a privately held medical device company based in Maynard, Massachusetts. The company is developing, manufacturing and marketing proprietary, disposable fiber optic catheters for the visualization of the cardiac anatomy and the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation. For more information, visit www.cardiofocus.com.
About H.I.G. Ventures
H.I.G. Ventures partners with entrepreneurs to provide the capital, expertise and relationships necessary to build market-leading businesses. With over $550 million in dedicated venture capital under management, the firm’s team invests nationally in early to mid-stage information technology and life sciences businesses. H.I.G. Ventures is the venture capital affiliate of H.I.G. Capital, a leading private and public equity investment firm with over $2.5 billion of capital under management and offices in Atlanta, Boston, Miami and San Francisco. For more information, visit www.higventures.com.
About KBL Healthcare Ventures
KBL Healthcare Ventures is a $100 million venture capital firm dedicated to investing in early stage and emerging growth healthcare companies. KBL also manages KBL Healthcare Acquisition Corporation II, a publicly traded Special Purpose Acquisition fund with $50M under management. KBL’s goal is to identify companies that are run by seasoned management teams and that have the potential to create long-term value. Within the medical device area, KBL seeks companies addressing large, unmet medical needs with demonstrated clinical benefit. For more information, visit www.kblvc.com.
Contact: CardioFocus, Inc. Stephen Sagon, 781-685-2701 ssagon@cardiofocus.com
Source: H.I.G. Ventures
