Ajax Health LLC, with backing from the $4 billion KKR Health Care Strategic Growth Fund II, and Boston Scientific Corp. launched a new business, Flowmod, to advance a system for treating heart failure developed by Boston Sci.
In an advance that could significantly lighten the load for caretakers in the “sandwich generation” and reduce loneliness in elderly patients, Aspargo Labs Inc. developed a metered delivery device that optimizes absorption of pharmaceuticals and reminds users to take their medications.
Boston Scientific Corp. agreed to acquire Sonivie Ltd., developer of a therapeutic intravascular ultrasound system for denervation to treat resistant hypertension, pulmonary hypertension and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. On a 100% basis, the deal is valued at $600 million with $400 million up front and $200 million upon achievement of a regulatory milestone.
The Apple Watch may be able to alert wearers to heart palpitations, but Google LLC’s Pixel Watch 3 can now detect when a user’s heart stops – and call emergency services. The pulse detection featured received clearance from the U.S. FDA on Feb. 26 and Google plans to make it available on its Pixel Watch 3 starting in March. Pulse detection is already available for watches sold in the U.K. and EU.
In a flurry of news releases on Feb. 27, Teleflex Inc. reported plans to buy the vascular intervention business of Biotronik SE & Co. for €760 million (US$791 million), said it intended to split into two separate public companies, floated a $300 million accelerated share repurchase program and reported the impending retirement of Chief Financial Officer Thomas Powell. The news sent the company stock down more than 20%.
Reflecting a positive reception in the market, Kestra Medical Technologies Ltd. increased the target haul for its planned IPO from $100 million to between $140 million and $160 million in an S-1 amendment filed Feb. 26. The company will offer 10 million shares at $14 to $16 per share, with the final price to be set the week of Mar. 3, just ahead of the offering date.
The trend of corporate pruning in med tech continues with Solventum Corp.’s decision to sell its purification and filtration business to Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. for $4.1 billion. The announcement follows two other big company splits already in 2025: Baxter International Inc.’s separation of its kidney unit as Vantive, bought by Carlyle Group Inc. for $3.8 billion, and Stryker Corp.’s planned sale of its spinal implants business to Viscogliosi Brothers LLC.
The U.S. FDA hasn’t taken up criminal justice as a sideline, but it did just clear Sonio Suspect. Far from a social miscreant, Suspect improves detection of fetal anomalies by 22 points by automatically detecting multiple types of abnormal findings and allows for detection as early as 11 weeks of gestation.
Roche Holding AG revealed plans to launch its sequencing by expansion technology next year, raising the possibility that rival Illumina Inc. could face a real run for its money. Illumina has long dominated the next-generation sequencing and clinical markets and another – potentially superior – high-throughput system on the horizon could put planned purchases on hold.
Up to 50% of glaucoma cases have a genetic component, a factor which could significantly change the screening recommendations and monitoring of patients – if they know their risk. Seonix Pty. Ltd. has a vision for making that genetic information easier to obtain and use to guide care with its Sightscore saliva-based test.
