Life Sciences Newsbriefs: Week Of January 30, 2012 (Part 1)

Medical Devices

Report predicts slow growth for U.S. diagnostic ECG device market The U.S. market for diagnostic electrocardiography systems will generate around $366 million by 2016, a Millennium Research Group report predicts. The report notes that demand for the devices among private cardiologists will decrease because of factors such as Medicare payment cuts and the move to accountable care organizations, which will drive ECG tests to larger organizations and affect the sales of those systems.

J&J CEO predicts sales gain for 2012 The decline in spending for elective procedures such as hip and knee replacements appears to be bottoming out, said Johnson & Johnson CEO William Weldon, who believes the trend and the fact that the company's recalled products are back to market could drive its sales up by about 2% this year. Such trends are "a hopeful indication for J&J?s surgical and device business as well as the broader medical device group," added analyst Matthew Miksic.

Mass. startup raises $2 million in funding round MC10 has secured $2 million in a round of financing from Aberdare Ventures of San Francisco. The Cambridge, Mass.-based startup specializes in stretchable electronic products tailored to the health sector, including devices used to monitor the brain, heart, muscles, hydration and body temperature.

InterValve eyes $8M to advance heart device to clinical trials Minnetonka, Minn.-based InterValve hopes to raise $8 million in a series A funding round. The company plans to use the money to start clinical studies of its transcatheter aortic valve this year and file for FDA clearance next year, CEO Mark Ungs said.

CFO says device tax will affect 50% of Covidien's revenues The 2.3% medical device excise tax set to begin next year would affect about 50% of Covidien's revenues, Chief Financial Officer Charles Dockendorff said at a recent investors' meeting.

FDA seeks to finalize companion diagnostics guidance by June 30 The FDA said it expects to finalize by the end of June its guidance governing companion diagnostic tests used to target drug treatments to patients. A draft of the guidance that was released for industry feedback last year pointed to the FDA's plans to evaluate biologic or drug therapies and their accompanying assays simultaneously.

St. Jude expects stronger foothold in CRM device market this year Daniel Starks, CEO of St. Jude Medical, has expressed confidence that the company will obtain a 1 percentage point market share in the global cardiac rhythm management device segment this year. This bullish outlook can be attributed in part to the firm's Unify Quadra defibrillator, which Starks said is already gaining market traction eight weeks after receiving FDA approval.

Naviscan debuts breast imaging devices in Europe Naviscan has announced the launch of its PET scanners used for breast imaging in Europe. The company said its Positron Emission Mammography scanners have been installed at an imaging center in Germany and at a clinic in Istanbul, Turkey.

Abbott says restructuring will affect jobs Abbott Laboratories has announced plans to reduce its workforce in the diagnostics and vascular sectors in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. The job cuts are part of a restructuring plan for the company, which will focus on performance and execution in the year ahead, said CEO Miles White.

Partnership aims to develop compact X-ray devices Tribogenics is working with the University of California Los Angeles to develop economical and compact X-ray sources, possibly about the size of a USB flash drive. The project will be based on the use of static electricity to generate X-rays, instead of using a high-voltage source. The company received some of its initial funding from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, which is looking for diagnostics devices that can be used in the field.

FDA's medical device arm unveils priority plan for 2012 The FDA's Center for Devices & Radiological Health has announced its medical...