Peijia Medical Ltd. has acquired exclusive rights to Jenavalve Technology Inc.’s transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) products for the treatment of aortic regurgitation (AR) and aortic stenosis (AS). Suzhou, China-based Peijia is now able to develop, manufacture, and commercialize the TAVR products in Greater China.

Oslo-based med-tech company Observe Medical ASA has acquired ultrasound technology firm Biim Ultrasound AS for €18.5 million (US$20.9 million). The company’s combined portfolio includes Observe’s automated, digital urine meter, Sippi, and Biim’s wireless ultrasound probe, Biim, which received 510(k) clearance in 2018. The ultrasound technology is specifically used to guide needle and catheter insertions for dialysis and vascular access procedures and is currently in use at Fresenius Kidney Care’s U.S. dialysis centers.

Viveon Health Acquisition Corp. (VHAQ) reported a merger deal with regenerative aesthetics company Suneva Medical Inc. According to the terms of the deal, the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), will issue 25 million shares and up to 12 million earnout shares to Suneva shareholders. The pro forma equity valuation of the companies is expected to be approximately $511 million, with the merger slated for completion in the first half of 2022.

Illumina Inc. and Agendia NV are joining forces for a multiyear partnership to develop diagnostic tests for breast cancer. The collaboration will unite lllumina’s Miseq Dx sequencing platform, with Agendia's flagship genomic test, Mammaprint, which identifies a patient’s breast cancer recurrence risk. Illumina has been steadily signing partnerships over the past few years and currently has more than 30 IVD partners and 40 sequencing-based solutions for cancer under development.

Two med-tech giants GE Healthcare Ltd. and Boston Scientific Corp. are teaming up to expand cardiac care in Southeast Asia. GE Healthcare and Boston Scientific reported plans to collaborate on an end-to-end cardiac care solution offered to cardiac care centers in Southeast Asia. The suite of care offered ranges from diagnostic to percutaneous coronary intervention.

Medtronic plc continued its aggressive acquisition strategy today with the announcement of an agreement to purchase Affera Inc. Medtronic Chairman and CEO Geoff Martha revealed in a presentation on Jan. 10 at the virtual edition of the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference that his company was paying $925 million for the cardiac mapping and navigation company. The total reflects $250 million in payments assuming Affera meets “contingent considerations.”

Owens & Minor Inc. (O&M) sent Apria Inc. shares out of the ballpark with the announcement of its acquisition of the at-home health care company for $1.45 billion in cash early this morning. Apria’s stock (NASDAQ:APR) closed Friday at $29.72, opened today at $37.16 and rose incrementally throughout the day to close at $37.48. O&M’s stock (NYSE:OMI) ended the week at $45.08; it ebbed sharply to $40.19 on the news before recovering to $45.35 at the end of the trading day.

Stryker Corp. reported that it signed a definitive merger agreement to acquire Vocera Communications Inc. for $2.97 billion in an all-cash transaction expected to close in the first quarter of this year. Vocera provides digital care and communication services, which Stryker said will designed to help hospitals connect caregivers and various data-generating medical devices such as wearables, paired beds, ambulation equipment, badges and alarms.

Movendo Technology srl and Maragal Medical PC have collaborated to provide free community screening for the risk of falls for Massachusetts Medicare patients using Movendo’s Hunova robotic technology. Hunova performs a progressive assessment on seated and standing patients to evaluate their flexibility, strength and balance. The system also provides personalized rehabilitative therapy recommendations.

Quidel Corp. reported a definitive agreement to acquire Ortho Clinical Diagnostics Holdings plc in a nearly $6 billion deal expected to close in the first half of 2022. The $24.68 per share offered by Quidel represents a nearly 25% premium over Ortho’s closing price as of Dec. 22. Quidel will also assume $2 billion in debt. In addition, Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings (Labcorp) said it would acquire Baltimore-based Personal Genome Diagnostics Inc., which offers a portfolio of genomics-based liquid biopsy and tissue-based diagnostic products, for $450 million in cash at closing plus up to $125 million contingent on achieving specific performance milestones. That deal is also expected to close in the first half of 2022, pending approval by both companies’ shareholders.