In a deal seen as expanding its presence in the spinal implants sector, Biomet (Warsaw, Indiana) entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Interpore International (Irvine, California) in a deal valued at about $280 million. Under the terms of the agreement, Biomet will acquire all of the outstanding common stock of Interpore for $14.50 a share in cash, the price representing a premium of 26% over Interpore's 30-day trading average. The board of directors of Interpore unanimously approved the agreement in a special meeting, and the transaction is expected to close, subject to regulatory approval, Interpore stockholder approval and other customary closing conditions, during the second quarter. Interpore is focused on the manufacture of products for spinal surgery. It has three major product groups: spinal implant products, orthobiologic products and minimally invasive surgery products. Biomet also reported completing an agreement with Merck KGaA (Darmstadt, Germany) to acquire Merck's 50% interest in the Biomet-Merck joint venture for $300 million in cash, as announced in December. The Biomet/Merck joint venture was established in 1998, creating a European orthopedic company with reported annualized sales of $40 million.

CardioDynamics (San Diego, California), the developer of Impedance Cardiography (ICG) technology, said it has acquired privately held Vermed, the electrode division of Vermont Medical (Bellows Falls, Vermont), a manufacturer of electrocardiograph (ECG) electrodes. CardioDynamics paid Vermont Medical a total purchase price of $16.5 million, including $12 million of cash and $4.5 million in CardioDynamics common stock (about 746,000 shares). Vermed is a supplier of disposable electrodes and related supplies used in ECG and other diagnostic procedures. It will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of CardioDynamics.

Corgenix Medical (Westminster, Colorado) and Genesis Bioventures (GBI; Surrey, British Columbia) have signed a definitive merger agreement for Genesis to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Corgenix in a stock-for-stock transaction. Genesis will issue 14 million shares of its common stock in exchange for 100% of Corgenix shares outstanding in a transaction valued at about $10 million. The merger agreement provides that Corgenix's current management team will assume the responsibility of managing the combined entity, which will continue to be known as Genesis Bioventures and will be headquartered in Westminster. Upon the anticipated consummation of the merger this summer, the companies will focus on the continued development and worldwide commercialization of Genesis' Mammastatin breast cancer diagnosis system (MSA), the further expansion of Corgenix's immunoassays for the clinical assessment of coagulation, vascular, liver and autoimmune diseases, and the acquisition of synergistic companies and technologies.

Cytyc (Boxborough, Massachusetts) said it has closed the acquisition of Novacept (Palo Alto, California), a company that manufactures and markets the NovaSure System, an endometrial ablation device to treat menorrhagia. The acquisition, valued at about $325 million, was first disclosed in March. Novacept's NovaSure Impedance Controlled Endometrial Ablation System for treating menorrhagia consists of a single-use device and a controller that deliver radiofrequency energy to the uterus. Cytyc manufactures the ThinPrep System used for cervical cancer screening and the platform from which the company has launched its expansion into breast cancer risk assessment with the FirstCyte Breast Test.

Fisher Scientific International (Hampton, New Hampshire) has completed its acquisition of privately held Oxoid Group Holdings Ltd. (Basingstoke, UK), which makes tools that test for bacterial contamination, for about $330 million in cash. The deal was first disclosed in February.

Heartlab (Westerly, Rhode Island), a developer of cardiac image and information management software, said it will purchase CardioNow (Encinitas, California), a provider of telecardiology and image archiving solutions to hospitals, cardiovascular core labs and clinical trial sponsors. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. CardioNow has developed a DICOM image archiving and sharing solution specific to cardiology and using the Internet to enable clinicians to access, share and collaborate over patients' angiograms, echocardiograms and intravascular ultrasound studies from anywhere in the world via PC-based technology.

OSI Systems (Hawthorne, California) has closed its acquisition of Spacelabs Medical (Issaquah, Washington), a global manufacturer and distributor of patient monitoring systems for critical care and anesthesia, wired and wireless networks and clinical information connectivity solutions, ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) monitors and medical data services. OSI announced the planned acquisition in early January at a purchase price of $57 million, subject to post-close adjustments for working capital and other items. OSI Systems has paid approximately $47 million as of the closing. The purchase price is still subject to post-closing adjustments, which will be finalized in the near future. Spacelabs was a unit of Instrumentarium (Helsinki, Finland), which was acquired by GE Medical Systems (Waukesha, Wisconsin) in a $2 billion deal last October. Its principal products include patient monitoring systems, network and connectivity solutions, ambulatory blood pressure monitors and medical data services.