Global medical device company Boston Scientific has announced on December 27, 2018, that it exercised its option to acquire remaining shares of privately-held medical device company Millipede, Inc. upon its recent successful completion of a first-in-human clinical study. Boston Scientific previously announced on January 24, 2018, an agreement to make a $90 million investment in Millipede. The current press release states the prior agreement included an option for Boston Scientific to “acquire [Millipede’s] remaining shares for $325M at closing, with a $125M payment becoming available upon achievement of a commercial milestone.”

Millipede has developed a non-invasive solution for repair of the heart’s mitral valve. According to Millipede’s website, Millipede’s IRIS Transcatheter Annuloplasty Ring System reshapes the mitral valve annulus of the heart to treat severe mitral regurgitation (MR). MR is caused by a leaking mitral valve, which causes blood to flow backward from the left ventricle into the left atrium. Over time, MR can lead to or accelerate heart failure and rhythm problems. Millipede’s website describes the IRIS system as providing the gold standard in surgical heart valve repair – a complete annuloplasty ring implant. The implant reshapes and reduces the mitral valve annulus opening, enabling return of leaflet coaptation and reduction of MR.

According to Millipede, the implant is delivered via catheter, for example through a small cut in the patient’s leg. This allows patients to avoid invasive open heart surgery, which is necessary for implantation of conventional annuloplasty rings. Millipede describes the transcatheter ring as repositionable and retrievable.

Millipede is based in Santa Rosa, California and was founded in 2012 by majority investor Santé Ventures and Steve Bolling, MD, and has been led by CEO Randy Lashinski since 2014.

Boston Scientific describes itself as a worldwide developer, manufacturer and marketer of medical devices, providing a broad range of high performance solutions that address patient needs and aim to reduce the cost of healthcare.

Millipede is a client of intellectual property and technology law firm Knobbe Martens. With close to 275 lawyers and scientists nationwide, Knobbe Martens dedicates its practice to all aspects of intellectual property law including litigation and is consistently ranked among the top intellectual property firms worldwide.

Written by: Tom Cowan