France's EyeTechCare has raised $9.5 million (€7.5 million) to speed development of an ultrasound device for the treatment of glaucoma. French insurance company SHAM, a first time investor, and Crédit Agricole Private Equity (CAPE), one of EyeTechCare's existing shareholders, provided the funding.
EyeTechCare's EyeOP1 uses the UC3 (ultrasound circular cyclo-coagulation) procedure, which reduces intraocular pressure by partially destroying the ciliary bodies that produce fluid in the eye. Glaucoma, which affects about 2 percent of the population, is a leading cause of blindness. The company plans to use this round of funding to complete the first clinical trial in man, as well as establish the manufacturing facilities and the sales and marketing. EyeTechCare hopes to launch EyeOP1 early next year.
"What [EyeTechCare's] management has succeeded in doing in less than two years convinced us of the company's potential. We believe that EyeTechCare will succeed in bringing this new therapy for glaucoma to the world market within the next three years, which will bring a major change in the treatment of this disease," notes Alexia Perouse, partner at Credit Agricole Private Equity, in a statement.
- here's EyeTechCare's release
PLUS: Buffalo, NY-based Smart Pill Corp., which develops pill-sized devices that help diagnose gastrointestinal diseases, raised $7.9 million of a $9.5 million equity offering. CityBizList reports that the developer has now raised more than $60 million, according to an SEC filing. Report