Terumo Aortic Acquires Aortica to Advance Dedicated FEVAR Solutions for Complex Aortic Aneurysms

VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) has learned that on November 20, 2019, medical device company Terumo Aortic announced it was acquiring Aortica. The transaction is scheduled to be completed within 2019 and will be paid in cash. Terumo Aortic believes that this acquisition will have a minimal impact on Terumo’s business performance for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2020.

Terumo, the parent company of Terumo Aortic, acquired Vascutek in 2002 and Bolton Medical in 2017. Terumo Aortic was recently formed through the integration of Bolton Medical and Vascutek, and is dedicated to launching the most comprehensive product portfolio in the field of aortic and peripheral vascular diseases. Founded in 1921, Terumo is a global medical device company based in Japan, currently employing more than 25,000 people worldwide.

Terumo Aortic’s therapeutic portfolio covers thoracic, abdominal, and peripheral aneurysms, acute and chronic aortic dissections, and peripheral occlusive disease. Currently, Terumo Aortic employs more than 1,250 people, including 850 at its Glasgow, Scotland (UK) office and 330 in Florida, USA. The company’s manufacturing bases are located in the United Kingdom and the United States, with products exported to over 100 countries worldwide.

Aortica, established in 2014 and headquartered in the Greater Seattle area of the United States, is a medical device company specializing in the design, manufacturing, and sales of its products. The company has developed an automated case planning software called AortaFit, which precisely aligns the openings of endovascular grafts with the patient’s branch arteries during fenestrated endovascular aneurysm repair (FEVAR) procedures. This technology aims to improve graft anchoring while minimizing the risk of endoleaks and migration associated with the endovascular treatment of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA).

The company has reported successful cases of FEVAR treatment using AortaFit in the first 30 patients. This technology, led by Benjamin Starnes, M.D., is part of an FDA-approved physician-sponsored Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) study. All procedures planned with the automated software were highly successful, including 16 cases involving the TREO AAA stent graft from Terumo Aortic.

Dr. Starnes stated, “Although we are evaluating several endografts, TREO was our choice due to its deliverability, conformability, and graft design that facilitates the creation of openings.”

Additionally, the BoulEVARd stent graft being developed by Terumo Aortic is also specifically designed for FEVAR. This balloon-expandable device can reliably integrate with the main body graft while enhancing its compliance with native human arteries.

Paul Holbrook, President of Terumo Aortic, stated, “This acquisition represents a significant opportunity for Terumo Aortic to accelerate the development of a best-in-class, dedicated FEVAR system. By leveraging the unique AortaFit system, the BoulEVARd stent graft, and the proven TREO platform, we aim to transform the management of vascular disease treatment. Furthermore, we firmly believe that this system will contribute to advancing personalized therapy.”

Following this acquisition, Terumo Aortic will drive the development of Aortica’s products and facilitate their phased launch in the United States, Europe, Japan, and other regions.

(Compiled by Jiang Ying)