Edwards Lifesciences Corp. reported better-than-expected results when it released its second quarter earnings late July 23, with revenue down 15% to $924 million, from $1.1 billion in the same period of 2019. The results beat Wall Street consensus of $797.5 million, and reflected an uptick in surgical procedures that had been delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Irvine, Calif.-based company sustained a net loss of $121.9 million, or $0.20 per share, based on generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), a sharp drop from $242.3 million, or $0.38 per share, in the same quarter last year. However, adjusted earnings looked brighter at $0.34 per share.

Startup Foldax Inc. has raised a $20 million series D round to back its development of biopolymer-based surgical and minimally invasive heart valves. Heart valves typically are either based on porcine or bovine tissues or are mechanical.

Medical science continues to define the relative risks of progressively smaller patient subsets across the disease spectrum, but this is particularly true of late in connection with aortic stenosis (AS).