Galway, Ireland, 11th July, 2012 – Neuravi Limited today announced that is has successfully completed a Series A financing round for €5.2m (US$6.5m) led by Fountain Healthcare Partners and Delta Partners. This funding will accelerate the on-going development of Neuravi’s ground breaking clot retrieval device for the treatment of acute ischemic stroke and will enable Neuravi to undertake clinical evaluation in patients. Established in 2009, Neuravi has assembled a large body of intellectual property in the field of mechanical retrieval devices for stroke and has positioned itself to be a major strategic player in this fast developing market.
Patients suffer an estimated 700,000 ischemic strokes in the US and a further 950,000 in Europe each year. Neuravi is developing a medical device to help stroke doctors treat patients very quickly after stroke onset by removing the lodged blood clot from the brain with its proprietary Stent Basket technology. A staggering 95% of patients currently receive no acute intervention for this often deadly or very debilitating condition, relying on rehabilitation only. The potential market could be as high as $2 billion per year following successful clinical trial completion and the products being approved for sale in major markets.
Commenting on the new funding, Dr Joe Mason at Delta Partners said, “Stroke is devastating to patients and their families. Its results impose huge burdens on society. Neuravi’s therapeutic device will potentially offer significant benefits to patients, clinicians and payors by improving treatment outcomes for large numbers of people who suffer from the condition.”
Commenting on their investment in Neuravi, Justin Lynch, Partner at Fountain Healthcare Partners said, “This talented Galway team has a successful track record in miniature endovascular product development from concept design to clinical approval and international commercialization. The neuro-vasculature is especially challenging because brain arteries are miniscule, delicate and tortuous and this team is on a path to developing the best in class thrombectomy device addressing what is set to become a multi-billion dollar market worldwide”.
Neuravi Chief Executive Eamon Brady commented, “We are delighted to welcome Fountain Healthcare Partners and Delta Partners as investors and appreciate the extensive industry expertise they bring onto the Board. We would also like to take the opportunity to thank Enterprise Ireland, PanEuro Technology Ventures and The Western Development Commission for the support they have provided Neuravi to date and their on-going commitment to the Company and its development of a novel therapeutic device for Ischemic Stroke”.
Neuravi expects to create 25 new jobs over the next three years as a result of this investment. This includes a series of both senior management and technical/functional hires over the coming months to fulfill the Research & Development, Quality Assurance, Regulatory Assurance, Manufacturing, Marketing and Finance functions of the company.