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| Ceterix's NovoStitch suture passer--Courtesy of Ceterix |
Ceterix Orthopaedics roped in $18 million in funding to support commercialization of its innovative surgical tools for arthroscopic procedures.
Previous investors Novo A/S, Versant Ventures and 5AM Ventures participated in the round, which also included debt financing from Silicon Valley Bank and Oxford Finance. Armentum Partners advised Ceterix during the transaction.
The Menlo Park, CA-based company will use funds to expand marketing for its arthroscopic surgical devices, which allows surgeons to place stitches in tight joint compartments without damaging surrounding structures such as nerves, arteries and cartilage. The technology can be applied in knee, hip and shoulder procedures. Ceterix launched its arthroscopic surgical device in July 2013, and had raised $27.6 million in VC funding prior to the latest round, the San Francisco Business Times reported.
New funding could help the company cash in on a growing market, as industry statistics see the global arthroscopic implants sector increasing from $2.2 billion in 2013 to $3.4 billion by 2020. Smaller outfits like Scottsdale, AZ-based Cayenne Medical and Conmed ($CNMD) have already beefed up their sports medicine offerings, and larger companies are also jumping onto the bandwagon. In February, U.K. device giant Smith & Nephew ($SNN) snatched up ArthroCare ($ARTC), a Texas device company that specializes in sports medicine joint repair. S&N CEO Olivier Bohuon told Bloomberg that the deal "rebalances Smith & Nephew in areas of higher growth."
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| Ceterix CEO John McCutcheon |
Ceterix, for its part, will continue to forge ahead with development of its arthroscopic tools. In addition to the latest funding round, the company secured two key U.S. patents for its meniscal and soft tissue repair technology.
"These company milestones will allow us to accelerate our efforts to meet the significant need for better surgical outcomes for millions of patients undergoing knee, hip and shoulder procedures each year," Ceterix CEO John McCutcheon said in a statement. "We have been extremely pleased with physician response to our technology, which has exceeded expectations on every front, and look forward to expanding our reach to additional U.S. physicians and patients in the coming months."
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