A Medical Device Daily

Bausch & Lomb (B&L; Rochester, New York) reported completing the acquisition of eyeonics (Aliso Viejo, California), the proposed purchase unveiled last month (Medical Device Daily, Jan. 23, 2008). Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

eyeonics now operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary of B&L.

eyeonics’ operations will become part of B&L’s surgical business, which offers a line of standard intraocular lenses, phacoemulsification equipment, vitreo-retinal and refractive products.

Andy Corley, eyeonics’ co-founder, CEO and chairman, will lead the U.S. surgical business.

The deal represents B&L’s first acquisition since being bought out by private equity firm Warburg Pincus in October (MDD, Oct. 29, 2007) for $4.5 billion.

eyeonics developed the crystalens intraocular lens (IOL), FDA-approved for the treatment of cataracts in November 2003. The crystalens is designed to replace the eye’s natural lens and has been implanted in more than 95,000 eyes worldwide, according to the company.

Nixon Peabody acted as legal counsel to B&L. Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati acted as legal counsel to eyeonics, and Piper Jaffray & Co. served as a financial advisor to eyeonics.

Acrongenomics (Geneva, Switzerland) said it has acquired a 10.9% interest in Molecular Vision (London), the value of that stake not disclosed.

The cash consideration will be used by Molecular Vision said that the acquired cash will be used for further technology development.

Molecular Vision is developing what it describes as “low-cost, easy-to-use, credit-card sized devices for medical testing designed to extend the in-house tools available to the general practitioner.

It said that the devices are being developed to allow “near patient” quantitative diagnosis, with a focus on key areas of high disease burden, such as kidney function and cardiovascular disease. The company says that the technology also has applications outside the diagnostics market (for instance, for forensic science, homeland security and environmental monitoring).

Molecular Vision is a spin-out company of Imperial College (London), founded in 2002 to meet a demand in the medical diagnostics, biosensors and analytical instrumentations markets and the need for miniaturized chemical and biological detectors. The company says it focuses on applying its technology to medical diagnostics.

Acrongenomics invests in technology platforms in the life sciences.

In other dealmaking:

OnCure Medical (Newport Beach, California), a provider of freestanding radiation therapy services, reported acquiringf Ocala Community Cancer Center (Ocala, Florida) and the Cancer Treatment Center of The Nature Coast (Beverly Hills, Florida).

The centers have been operated by American Radiation Oncology Associates (AROA; Pembroke Pines, Florida) and G. Jayanth Rao, MD, the founder, and his partner Ravi Sandrapaty, MD.

“OnCure is the second largest freestanding provider of radiation therapy services in the State of Florida, and with the addition of AROA to our existing network, we remain committed to expand our regional networks of radiation centers in association with quality physicians,” said David Chernow, CEO of OnCure.

OnCure owns, operates and manages 37 radiation centers, all in California and Florida, providing treatment areas and equipment for radiation therapy and diagnostic radiology, including IMRT, IGRT, CT, and PET/CT.

Tenet Healthcare (Dallas) reported that a company subsidiary has agreed to sell North Ridge Medical Center (Fort Lauderdale, Florida), a 332-bed acute care hospital, to Holy Cross Hospital (Fort Lauderdale). Financial terms were not disclosed.

Holy Cross, a Catholic hospital in Broward County, sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy, is a 571-bed hospital opened in 1955. Holy Cross has more than 600 physicians on staff representing more than 40 specialties, and over 2,800 employees.

The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and is expected to be completed within 60 days. Tenet reported in November that it was seeking a buyer for North Ridge Medical Center.

Community Health Systems (CHS; Franklin, Tennessee) reported that it has sold Russell County Medical Center (Lebanon, Virginia), a 78-bed acute care hospital, and related assets, to Mountain Health States Alliance (Johnson City, Tennessee), a non-profit corporation, for about $45 million.

CHS operates general acute care hospitals in non-urban and mid-size markets throughout the U.S.. Through its subsidiaries, the company currently owns, leases or operates 125 hospitals in 28 states and one in Ireland.