REGENSBURG, Germany & HANGZHOU, China--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Transcatheter Technologies GmbH, a medical device company that has developed a full range of transcatheter valve implantation systems for catheter-based heart valve therapy, announced today that it has sold its technology portfolio to Venus Medtech. The Transcatheter Technologies’ technology will be the basis of a next-generation product portfolio developed and marketed by Venus Medtech for the Chinese and international markets. Under the agreement, Transcatheter Technologies’ two co-founders, CEO and cardiac surgeon Dr. Wolfgang Goetz, M.D., and CTO and engineer Hou-Sen Lim, will assist Venus Medtech for up to three months with the transition and commercialization of the acquired technology.
Venus Medtech (HangZhou) Inc. develops and manufactures an advanced interventional artificial cardiac valve system. Venus Medtech is a leading heart valve developer in China. Its transcatheter aortic valve has completed clinical trials and follow-up, and is awaiting China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) clearance. Its transcatheter pulmonic valve is completing its clinical trials. Both of the valves are expected to be the first transcatheter valves approved in China. Venus Medtech’s goal is to be a worldwide transcatheter heart valve company and last month announced an investment of $37 million from Goldman Sachs to support R&D and marketing activities for Venus Medtech’s cardiac valve products.
“Transcatheter Technologies was founded with the goal of making noninvasive heart valve implantation safer for patients, thereby expanding the number of patients who may benefit from this procedure. Our agreement with Venus Medtech helps us continue this mission and will fuel the continued development of our next-generation technology platform for the treatment of various structural heart diseases in the Chinese market,” said Dr. Goetz. “Our third-generation transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) system—Trinity—is designed to be the world’s first ‘truly repositionable’ TAVI system and has already completed two-years of follow-up.”
“Certainly, the early clinical results for the Trinity TAVI system have been very impressive,” said Principal Investigator Prof. Dr. Christian Hengstenberg, cardiologist at the German Heart Center, Munich, Germany. “Unlike second-generation TAVI systems, the Trinity aortic valve is able to be positioned precisely or repositioned, even after full implantation, in a safe manner. In our study, Trinity’s novel sealing cuff has provided outstanding results without paravalvular leakage (PVL), a frequent complication of TAVI. Equally critical, the risk of atrio-ventricular (AV) block is dramatically reduced due to the supra-annular positioning of the Trinity valve.”
“Second generation TAVI systems cannot be repositioned once they are fully implanted. Trinity, however, is designed to solve this substantial issue and reduce the chance of PVL and AV block,” added Dr. Goetz. “Once Trinity is completely expanded and anchored above the annulus, a cardiologist can fully evaluate the valve’s function to determine whether it needs to be repositioned, retrieved, or kept in the same position. This feature is unique to Trinity, positioning Trinity as a Third-Generation TAVI System.”
“Under the leadership of Dr. Goetz, Transcatheter Technologies has developed not one, but three, next-generation technologies that will play a significant role in treating structural heart disease patients in China and the rest of the world,” said Christoph Brandenberger, Managing Director, Healthios Capital Markets. “Dr. Goetz has demonstrated that he can quickly develop and cost-effectively validate clinically meaningful technology.”
“By acquiring Transcatheter Technologies’ next-generation valve technologies, Venus Medtech will greatly enhance its valve products presence in the global market,” said Venus Medtech’s CEO, Eric Zi.
About Transcatheter Technologies GmbH
Transcatheter
Technologies GmbH, co-founded by cardiac surgeon Dr. Wolfgang Goetz
and engineer Hou-Sen Lim, is a privately held medical device
company headquartered in Regensburg, Germany. The company is developing
a range of products for the treatment of structural heart disease and
valve disorders. For more information: www.transcather-technologies.com.
About Venus Medtech (HangZhou) Inc.
Venus Medtech (HangZhou)
Inc. is a leading heart valve developer in China. Its transcatheter
aortic valves have completed clinical trials and follow-up and are
pending China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) clearance. Its
transcatheter pulmonic valves are completing it clinical trials. Both of
the valves are expected to be the first transcatheter valves approved in
China. They are also developing the next-generation heart valves with
pre-crimping technology. Venus Medtech’s goal is to be a worldwide
transcatheter heat valve company. For more information: www.venusmedtech.com.
