California-based Ardian, the developer of a catheter-based medical system to treat hypertension, has received $47m (£32.84m) in a financing round led by US medical-device giant Medtronic.
Hypertension, which affects approximately one-third of the developed world's adult population, significantly increases the risk of heart attack, stroke, heart failure and chronic kidney disease and is the single most common contributor to death worldwide.
Founded in 2003, Ardian has been working to develop a minimally invasive treatment for hypertension.
Understanding that the hyperactivity of renal sympathetic nerves is a major contributor to the progression of the disease, the company has developed a system designed to block these nerves and thereby lower blood pressure.
Ardian’s Symplicity system comprises a catheter and an automated portable RF generator.
It delivers energy through the arterial wall to the renal nerves, disrupting the renal sympathetic nervous system over-activity that causes the hypertension.
'We are particularly encouraged to have Medtronic as a new partner and see their investment as a validation of our exceptional early clinical results and the potential of our straightforward treatment for such a pervasive and complex disease,' said Andrew Cleeland, president and chief executive officer of Ardian.
Professor Henry Krum of the Alfred Hospital/Monash University in
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