TAVI: Direct Flow taps ex-CoreValve chief Lemaitre | Personnel Moves

May 7, 2015 By Brad Perriello

The former Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) executive who led CoreValve to its $800 million acquisition is looking to compete with both of his former employers in the transcatheter aortic valve implant space.

Direct Flow Medical said today that it hired Daniel Lemaitre to be its president & CEO, replacing Bernard Lyons, who plans to retire effective immediately. Direct Flow said it also tapped David Boyle, a finance veteran from the pharmaceutical industry, to be its new CFO.

Lemaitre, at 1 time a healthcare analyst at Merrill Lynch and Cowen & Co., worked as Medtronic’s senior vice president for strategic planning & business development before moving to the CEO spot at CoreValve in 2008. Medtronic acquired CoreValve the next year. Lemaitre is chairman at Smith & Nephew (FTSE:SN, NYSE:SNN) spinout Bioventus, is lead director at Endologix (NSDQ:ELGX) and on the board at Globus Medical (NYSE:GMED).

"Dan is the ideal person to help Direct Flow Medical realize its mission of becoming a true structural heart leader. Dan’s knowledge of the aortic valve space and the medical device landscape as a whole is unparalleled. His experience will be extraordinarily valuable as we become a major participant in the market. In addition, David Boyle will provide Dan with exceptionally strong financial stewardship as we build the company in the years ahead," Direct Flow chairman Paul LaViolette, himself a medtech vet of long standing, said in prepared remarks.

LaViolette also thanks Lyons for his 9 years in the corner office at the company.

"He took an innovative idea and made it real, generating excellent clinical results, securing critical financing, building a robust commercial organization in Europe and achieving strong regulatory momentum in the U.S. He built this company into 1 with tremendous growth potential and we are grateful for his contribution," LaViolette said.

"Direct Flow Medical has an innovative platform technology addressing one of the largest and fastest-growing markets in medical technology today – transcatheter aortic heart valve replacement, or TAVR – with the opportunity to address other structural heart diseases," Lemaitre added. "I am impressed with the unique benefits of the company’s technology platform and excited to be part of the team that will bring tremendous value to patients, physicians and investors."

In a separate release, Direct Flow said it named well-known heart valve expert Dr. Randolph Chitwood director of surgeon relations.

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