LAKE FOREST, Calif., Aug. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Orqis(R) Medical Corporation, a clinical-stage company developing devices for the treatment of congestive heart failure (CHF), announced today that it secured a $10 million venture debt commitment from Lighthouse Capital Partners. This additional source of capital will enable the company to rapidly accelerate the development of its Exeleras(R) System, an implantable device for patients with mid- to late-stage chronic heart failure.
Orqis Medical plans its first human implant with the Exeleras(R) System within the next 12 months. The system incorporates a pump, about the size of an implantable cardioverter defibrillator, which is placed in a minimally invasive manner.
“The promising preclinical data generated with the Exeleras System warranted that we find a way to accelerate its clinical development,” said Ken Charhut, President and Chief Executive Officer of Orqis Medical. “We now have the ability to fast track the Exeleras program to address the enormous unmet needs of CHF patients.”
Congestive heart failure is a chronic disease resulting from the inability of the heart to pump enough blood to meet the demands of the body. CHF is a life-threatening condition afflicting nearly 5 million Americans and is directly and indirectly responsible for 3.6 million hospital admissions each year.
“Orqis Medical has emerged as a leader in the development of novel devices to treat congestive heart failure,” commented Cristy Barnes of Lighthouse Capital Partners. “Exeleras now positions the company with a chronic therapy complementing their Cancion(R) acute device, resulting in one of the most exciting opportunities in the cardiovascular area.”
About Orqis Medical Corporation
Orqis Medical Corporation is a privately held, clinical-stage medical device company seeking to redefine heart failure therapy by developing products that prevent or reverse underlying heart failure disease progression and provide new treatment options to the clinical community to improve patient outcomes and quality of life. The company’s percutaneous Cancion(R) System, for the treatment of acutely decompensated patients with chronic heart failure, is CE marked and is currently under an investigational device exemption (IDE) investigation in the United States in the MOMENTUM Pivotal Trial. For more information about Orqis Medical, please visit www.orqis.com and for more information about the MOMENTUM Trial, please visit www.momentumtrial.com.
About Lighthouse Capital Partners
Lighthouse Capital Partners is a leading venture debt firm with investing offices in Menlo Park, Calif. and Cambridge, Mass. Lighthouse invests capital in the form of secured loans to early- and expansion-stage technology and life science companies that have received equity financing from top-tier venture capital firms. The Lighthouse investment team consists of seasoned professionals with a wide breadth of operating and financial experience. Over the past decade, LCP has funded some of the nation’s pre-eminent young companies, including Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Netflix, nVidia, Ariba, Broadbase Software, Rhapsody Networks, Foundry Networks, Sirocco Systems and Airespace.
NOTE: Orqis, Cancion and Exeleras are among the trademarks or registered trademarks of Orqis Medical Corporation.
Orqis Medical Corporation
CONTACT: media, Brian McIntee, Director of Marketing, +1-949-268-0184, orinvestors, John M. Markovich, +1-949-268-0552, Chief Financial Officer,both of Orqis Medical Corporation
