Spinal Kinetics said it raised a $34 million funding round it plans to use to back a clinical trial for its M6-C cervical disc implant and inked a global settlement of its patent spat with Johnson & Johnson‘s (NYSE:JNJ) DePuy Synthes division.
The funding round was led by prior backers Scale Venture Partners, Lumira Capital, De Novo Ventures, SV Life Sciences and HLM Ventures, according to a press release.
Spinal Kinetics said it plans to use the bulk of the proceeds on a clinical trial to back FDA approval of the M6-C implant as an alternative to spinal fusion procedures. Enrollment is already under way, according to the release.
"The entire Spinal Kinetics team is thrilled to have reached this important milestone," president & CEO Tom Afzal said in prepared remarks. "Surgeons, patients and our investors have been extremely supportive of the M6 and have enabled us to take this critical step. We look forward to working with the U.S. sites to complete the clinical trial while continuing to expand M6 availability internationally."
Afzal did not return a call from MassDevice.com seeking comment on the round.
Spinal Kinetics also said it agreed to a global settlement of all patent litigation with Synthes and DePuy Synthes over the M6 device. Last November a federal appeals court upheld the Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company’s win over Synthes, ruling that a pair of Spinal Kinetics intervertebral implants do not infringe a Synthes patent.
