Nfocus Buys StarFire Medical

Nfocus Neuromedical Inc., a Palo Alto, Calif.-based medical device company focused on hemorrhagic stroke, has acquired StarFire Medical Inc., a maker of therapeutic implantable devices for minimally-invasive treatment of neurovascular disease. No financial terms were disclosed.

Nfocus has raised nearly $35 million in total VC funding since 1999, with current shareholders including ePlanet Ventures, Oxford Bioscience Partners and Technology Partners.

PRESS RELEASE

Nfocus Neuromedical, Inc. announced today that it has completed the acquisition of StarFire Medical, Inc. StarFire Medical is a manufacturer of therapeutic implantable devices for interventional (minimally invasive) treatment of neurovascular disease.

The assets acquired include products such as the DSB (Detachable Silicone Balloon) and the NDSB (Non-Detachable Silicone Balloon), also known as the Endeavor Balloon Catheter, both of which have been cleared for marketing by the FDA and through CE marking in Europe. The DSB is a silicone balloon which is used to treat neurovascular fistulas and aneurysms through endovascular (less-invasive catheter) techniques. The DSB can be navigated to the site of pathology, inflated and detached to produce a permanent embolization for symptomatic carotid-cavernous fistulas and for aneurysm treatment through parent vessel occlusion. The NDSB is a soft silicone balloon attached to a very flexible microcatheter and is used for temporary and test occlusion during endovascular procedures.

The acquisition also included other neurovascular devices and Intellectual Property (IP) of StarFire. The remaining StarFire IP is focused on advanced intracranial aneurysm treatment devices that are in development.

“There has been strong physician interest in having access to these types of products in the United States,” stated Martin S. Dieck, President and Chief Executive Officer of Nfocus Neuromedical. “The combination of StarFire's existing FDA-cleared devices and advanced aneurysm cover technology fits perfectly with the Nfocus product platform.”

Hemorrhagic Stroke

Hemorrhagic stroke is a critical and often life-threatening event most frequently brought on by a rupturing aneurysm or other vascular malformation. In many cases, open surgery may not be ideal or even possible, but the alternative, current endovascular devices, may not provide permanent treatment. It is these critical and underserved patients and their physicians, the interventional neuroradiologist and neurointerventional surgeon, which Nfocus is committed to serve.

For more information about aneurysms and hemorrhagic stroke see: http://www.strokeassociation.org and http://www.snis.org

About Nfocus Neuromedical, Inc.

Nfocus is a neurovascular development, manufacturing and marketing company focused on treating hemorrhagic stroke. Current and future product programs are aimed at rapid treatment of aneurysms and fistulas in the brain. Based in Palo Alto, California, Nfocus is privately held and venture capital backed. See http://www.nfocusneuro.com for further information. Nfocus products will be used by physicians performing less-invasive surgery with endovascular catheters using a technique known as neurointerventional surgery.

Website: http://www.nfocusmedical.com/