Obalon Therapeutics (NSDQ:OBLN) said today that it inked the first lease in its pivot to a brick-and-mortar retail strategy. The San Diego space is slated to become the Carlsbad, Calif.-based company’s first weight-loss center. Obalon, which developed a gas-filled balloon designed to treat obesity, in April laid off 50% of its employees in announcing the shift […]
Weight loss
Obalon slashes debt, raises $9m for weight loss balloon
Obalon Therapeutics (NSDQ:OBLN) said today that it slashed its debt load and added nearly $9 million to its coffers as it pivots toward a retail strategy. In April the Carlsbad, Calif.-based company, which makes a gas-filled balloon designed to treat obesity, revealed plans to lay off 50% of its employees, including all of its direct sales force, as it […]
Obalon readies $17m offering for retail pivot
Obalon Therapeutics (NSDQ:OBLN) last week registered a stock offering worth more than $17 million that it plans to use to finance its pivot to retail. In April the Carlsbad, Calif.-based company, which makes a gas-filled balloon designed to treat obesity, revealed plans to lay off 50% of its employees, including all of its direct sales force, in a […]
Apollo Endosurgery updates labeling on intragastric balloon
Apollo Endosurgery (NSDQ:APEN) said today that the FDA has approved its proposed labeling updates for the Orbera intragastric liquid-filled balloon system, which is used to treat obesity. The goal of the labeling updates is to improve patient safety and they will take effect immediately, according to the Austin, Texas-based company. The Orbera system and Reshape […]
GI Dynamics eyes CE Mark in 2020, reaps $2m in warrants exercise
GI Dynamics (ASX:GID) said it launched a pivotal trial of its EndoBarrier plastic gut sleeve, aiming to win back CE Mark approval next year, and raised the second tranche of a $10 million financing plan. The Boston-based company won approval for the trial in February to observe the EndoBarrier sleeve designed to prevent the absorption of […]
Gelesis lands $11m Italian grant
Gelesis said today that it received a $10.6 million (EU €9.4 million) grant to support the manufacturing of its Plenity weight loss device. The Boston-based company said it received the grant from the Puglia Region of Italy, where its material science R&D and clinical supply manufacturing is located. Funds from the grant came from the […]
BaroNova wins FDA nod for TransPyloric Shuttle weight loss device
BaroNova said today that it won FDA approval for its TransPyloric Shuttle non-surgical device intended for treating obesity, now cleared as a weight loss solution for adults with obesity and a body mass index of 30 to 40 kg/m2. The San Carlos, Calif.-based company said that the device is approved for up to 12 months […]
FDA clears Gelesis weight-loss hydrogel pill Plenity
Gelesis (Boston) recently announced that it has received FDA clearance for its Plenity weight management prescription drug. The drug is a weight management aid for adults who have a body mass index of 25-40 kg/m2 and is supposed to be used with diet and exercise. It can be used in people with and without […]
Obalon taps Cowen to explore ‘strategic alternatives’
Obalon Therapeutics (NSDQ:OBLN) today tapped an advisory firm to explore “strategic alternatives,” a week after revealing plans to cut its workforce in half. The Carlsbad, Calif.-based company, which makes a gas-filled balloon designed to treat obesity, said April 3 that it would lay off 49 of its 100 employees, including all of its direct sales force, […]
Epitomee Medical raises $8m for novel weight-loss device
Early-stage medical device developer Epitomee Medical said today that it raised $8 million in a new round of equity financing to support its novel Epitomee Capsule “shapeshifting” pill intended to prevent diabetes and promote weight loss. The Israel-based company said that its Epitomee Capsule contains a shape-shifting scaffold that, after it is ingested, helps the […]
J&J’s Ethicon touts economic study of magnetic Torax GERD device
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) subsidiary Ethicon touted a study showing that the Linx device it acquired two years ago was cheaper than laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication in treating gastrointestinal reflux disease. Shoreview, Minn.-based Torax Medical makes the Linx device, an implant of interlinked titanium beads with magnetic cores designed to augment the esophageal sphincter to prevent […]