Bluegrass Vascular taps ex-ArthoCare R&D chief Niederauer for CEO

Bluegrass Vascular Technologies said it named Gabriele Niederauer its new president & CEO, hard on the heels of a Series A funding round that brought in $4.5 million for its Surfacer central venous catheter.

Niederauer, the former vice president of R&D for ArthroCare‘s
ENT-Sinus division (now a part of Smith & Nephew (FTSE:SN, NYSE:SNN)), also put in time at ENTrigue Surgical, C2M Medical and OsteoBiologics, according to a press release.

"BVT has developed a critical mission to address shortcomings in the venous access market. I am honored to join the team and build upon that mission to bring superior, life-saving technologies to the market," Niederauer said in prepared remarks. "I look forward to working with the team to commercialize the innovative Surfacer System."

Bluegrass Vascular raised a $4.5 million Series A round in July that it plans to spend in pursuit of CE Mark approval in the European Union for the Surfacer device, which is designed to restore central venous access in patients with occluded veins.

"Gabriele is a great addition to the team," said Paul Castella, senior managing partner of Targeted Technology Funds, which led the Series A round. "She has over 20 years of experience in the development and commercialization of medical devices and is a great fit to lead the company to commercialization in Europe and the US."

Former CEO Jim Clifton, a co-founder, is slated for the COO role, responsible for operations, project management and market strategy, according to the release.

Biolase confirms Nugent as CEO, promotes Arrow to CMO
Biolase (NSDQ:BIOL) said it made interim CEO Jeffrey Nugent’s role permanent and promoted COO Dr. Alexander Arrow to be its new chief medical officer. Biolase put Nugent into the corner office in June, amid a court-ordered shake-up that included the ouster of Federico Pignatelli as CEO.
Read more

Philips Healthcare nabs BD exec for Down Under GM
Royal Philips (NYSE:PHG) named former Becton Dickinson & Co. (NYSE:BDX) executive Kevin Barrow country manager for Philips Australia and New Zealand and general manager of Philips Healthcare in those countries.
Read more

Foundry partner Engelson is Medina Medical’s new CEO
Erik Engelson, a former partner at medical device incubator The Foundry, was named CEO of Medina Medical effective August 18.
Read more

Poldermans beta blocker scandal trails new ESC prez Bax

A scandal is dogging the appointment of Dr. Jeroen Bax as president of the European Society of Cardiology, stemming from his close collaboration with Dr. Don Poldermans, a Dutch researcher accused of faking data in a seminal 1999 study on the use of beta blockers during vascular surgery.
Read more