A Medical Device Daily

Privately held Tepha (Cambridge, Massachusetts) reported that it has closed a $10.7 million financing led by The Vertical Group. Also participating in the financing were Integra Ventures, Novartis Venture Fund, and Westfield Life Sciences Fund.

The company said the funds will be used to support the development of its biopolymer technology platform, including materials processing, device testing and regulatory submissions.

“We are very pleased to complete this significant financing which will permit us to sustain the momentum that has been generated by recent FDA 510(k) releases,” said Simon Williams, president/CEO of Tepha.

The TephaFLEX biopolymer technology, licensed from Metabolix (Cambridge, Massachusetts) and based on research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT; Cambridge, Massachusetts), extends the range of material properties available for the development of absorbable medical devices.

Earlier this year Tepha received FDA clearance for its TephaFLEX absorbable suture (Medical Device Daily, Feb. 13, 2007), and in April the company received its second 510(k) clearance for the TephaFLEX surgical mesh indicated for hernia, pelvic floor and other soft tissue temporary wound support.

Tepha said that several medical device companies are currently working with it to apply the new biopolymer technology to the development of other medical devices. Products under development include surgical meshes, anti-adhesion films, hemostats, intra-cardiac devices, absorbable stents, ligament and tendon repair devices, embolization agents, and drug delivery systems.

The company’s current corporate partners includeAesculap (Center Valley, Pennsylvania), HemCon Medical Technologies (Portland, Oregon), LifeCell (Branchburg, New Jersey), NMT Medical (Boston) and Tornier (Eden Prairie, Minnesota).

Clarity Imaging International (Austin, Texas) said its board has authorized a 3-for-1 forward split of its common stock, part of its program to improve its equity structure, it said.

“Clarity is entering into a strong growth phase and has identified multiple emerging products ready to launch in the near future,” said Michael Chermak, CEO. “When a company executes a forward stock split from a position of strength, it can have very positive results, including increased investor interest, improved stock liquidity, and reduced administration costs.”

Clarity’s activities include introduction of diagnostic and imaging technologies, providing in-office diagnostic services, and offering medical imaging center development, consultation and management.

In other financing news: MED3OOO (Pittsburgh), a national healthcare management and technology company, has become a major stakeholder in InteGreat Concepts (Scottsdale, Arizona), a provider of electronic health record (EHR) systems for physician group practices.

MED3OOO will provide InteGreat with substantial capital and knowledge resources for its next generation of product improvements. In addition, InteGreat will have full access to MED3OOO’s resources in the areas of advanced data warehouse reporting, disease management, population health management and predictive health modeling.