Medtronic to expand
cardiovascular products with acquisition of Invatec
28 January 2010
Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE:MDT) has announced that it will
acquire Invatec, a developer of innovative medical technologies for the
interventional treatment of cardiovascular disease, and two affiliated
companies: Fogazzi, which provides polymer technology to Invatec; and
Krauth Cardiovascular, which distributes Invatec products in Germany.
Medtronic will make an initial payment of $350 million to Invatec and
additional payments of up to $150 million for Invatec’s achievement of
specific milestones.
Invatec’s array of stents, angioplasty balloons and accessory
products complement therapies and products in Medtronic’s CardioVascular
business, adding a robust peripheral franchise and pipeline, while
enhancing its coronary product offering. Notably, Invatec has brought
four drug-eluting balloons to market, covering the coronaries and
lower-extremity vessels — the only company worldwide with this
distinction. It is a pioneer in the development and commercialization of
lesion-specific solutions, including therapies for below-the-knee and
carotid artery disease.
“Medtronic’s acquisition of Invatec will accelerate the growth of our
CardioVascular business, adding important new products for the coronary
and peripheral vascular markets,” said Scott Ward, senior vice president
at Medtronic and president of the CardioVascular business.
“Invatec brings to Medtronic an established international business
with a European center of technology development and manufacturing, as
well as a strong history of delivering products and high-value solutions
to the interventional market,” said Andrea Venturelli, co-founder, chief
executive and technical officer of Invatec.
Invatec co-founder Stefan Widensohler, vice president of global sales
and marketing, said, “Our integration into Medtronic creates a
tremendous opportunity to leverage Medtronic’s global scale and scope
across geographies and functions, from R&D to sales and marketing, to
advance the interventional treatment of cardiovascular disease.”
Cardiovascular interventions represent the largest sector of
the world medical device market, generating $10 billion annually on a
global basis. A significant growth opportunity within this sector is
peripheral vascular disease, a large and underserved market currently
estimated at US$2 billion annually and growing faster than 10 percent
per year.
Approximately 20 million people in the United States and Western
Europe alone suffer from peripheral vascular disease, which causes pain,
reduces mobility, inhibits wound healing and leads to approximately
250,000 amputations per year.
Medtronic says that with Invatec will be better positioned to address
these and other unmet clinical needs in the treatment of cardiovascular
disease, the world’s leading cause of death.