Murj said today that it raised a $4.5 million Series A round for the platform it’s developing to manage data from implanted cardiac devices. Santa Cruz, Calif.-based Murj said the round was led by True Ventures, joined by Social Capital and investors from a seed round. True Ventures co-founder Jon Callaghan is slated to join the Murj board […]
Cardiac Rhythm Management
FDA warns Abbott on St. Jude Medical plant in California
The FDA yesterday issued another warning letter about a St. Jude Medical (NYSE:STJ) plant in California, now owned by Abbott (NYSE:ABT), that makes cardiac rhythm management products. It’s at least the 2nd time the federal safety watchdog has flagged the plant in Sylmar, which makes defibrillators and the Merlin home cardiac monitor. In 2012 the FDA slapped St. […]
Appeals court upholds Medtronic win in $6m legal fees spat with Mirowski
The estate of Dr. Michel Mirowski, who helped invent the implantable defibrillator owes Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) $6 million to cover legal fees in their long-running patent spat, a federal appeals court ruled today. Mirowski Family Ventures represents the estate of CRM pioneer Dr. Michel Mirowski. The group, which controls several patents related to ICDs and cardiac resynchronization therapy devices, has been […]
Boston Scientific touts U.K. nod for EnduraLife batteries
Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) said yesterday that a U.K. healthcare agency backed its EnduraLife batteries for cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillators, citing the savings offering by reduced replacement procedures. The guidance from Great Britain’s National Institute for Health & Care Excellence concluded that the EnduraLife technology would improve outcomes and create some $7.4 million (£6 million) in savings over 5 […]
Supreme Court declines Boston Scientific’s appeal in $309m CRM patent loss
The U.S. Supreme Court today declined to take up an appeal by Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) of a $309 million loss in a lawsuit over cardiac rhythm management device patents. Marlborough, Mass.-based Boston Scientific lost the judgment in September 2014, part of a long-running patent war with the family of the late physician who helped invent the implantable cardioverter defibrillator, Dr. Michel […]
Japan approves Medtronic’s Micra leadless pacemaker
Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) said today that Japanese regulators approved its Micra leadless pacemaker, which it claims as the world’s smallest pacemaker. At 1/10th the size of a conventional pacemaker, or roughly the size of a large vitamin, Micra is designed to be implanted via catheter in the right ventricle to deliver single-chamber pacing. The device has an estimated 12-year […]
Pacemaker data lead to arson charges for Ohio man
Pacemaker data reportedly led to arson and fraud charges for an Ohio man accused of torching his home for the insurance money. Ross Compton of Middletown, Ohio, faces felony counts of aggravated arson and insurance fraud for the Sept. 19 fire at his home, which allegedly caused about $400,000 in damages and destroyed the 2,000-square-foot […]
FDA approves Medtronic’s Claria MRI quad CRT-D
Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) said today that it won pre-market approval from the FDA for its Claria MRI quad cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillator for magnetic resonance imaging scans at both 1.5 and 3 Tesla. “The Claria MRI CRT-D is our latest innovation to help improve patients’ response to CRT, establishing a new level of personalized care,” heart […]
Boston Scientific, University of Alabama settle CRM patent spat
Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) and the University of Alabama settled a patent dispute over cardiac rhythm management technology. The spat spans back to 2014, when the University of Alabama at Birmingham and the UAB Research Foundation filed a lawsuit against Boston Scientific and Cardiac Pacemakers, saying that the companies infringed on its patent by making, using, offering […]
Outside firm backs up short-seller’s claims against St. Jude Medical
Short-selling firm Muddy Waters said today that outside cybersecurity experts validated its claim that cardiac rhythm management devices made by St. Jude Medical (NYSE:STJ) are vulnerable to malicious hackers. Muddy Waters and research firm MedSec Holdings, which both stand to gain financially from a decline in the price of STJ shares, 1st claimed in August that St. Jude’s […]
Turning cynicism into healthy skepticism between clinicians and industry
A former practicing cardiologist, Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) executive Dr. Ken Stein has experienced firsthand the cynicism between clinicians and the industry. As an example, Stein cites the issue of battery longevity in cardiac implants as viewed by physicians and those on the medical device side. Writing for the journal Circulation, Stein – now chief medical officer for rhythm management […]