Velano Vascular is hoping that its device is adopted widely by hospitals seeking to reduce the need for patient needle sticks and the exposure of healthcare providers to needles. Its device has now gotten a CE mark, after being cleared by the FDA in February.
And, boding well for hospital appetite for its product, two hospitals--Griffin Hospital in Derby, CT and The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia--participated in a $5 million Series A round for the device during the same month. The financing was earmarked to get Velano's device into clinical evaluation and to start commercializing it with select hospital partners.
The idea behind the startup is to use the existing vein access via a peripheral intravenous (PIV) catheter, which is placed in most hospital patients for the fast and easy IV administration of medication or fluids. Currently, the line can be used to draw blood upon insertion but Velano's device promises to repurpose a PIV catheter for blood draws at any time, thereby eliminating the need for repeated needle sticks of a hospital patient.
The company has started clinical trials of its device in the U.S. and has started a research collaboration with Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, MA. It is disposable, intended for use in a single patient.
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| Dr. Pitou Devgon, Velano president |
"This important regulatory approval underscores the need for this technology around the world," said Velano co-founder and President Dr. Pitou Devgon on the recent receipt of a CE mark in a statement. "Our aim is to improve the way medicine has been practiced for decades in order to improve the patient experience and increase safety for medical professionals."
Devgon was previously an executive with healthcare venture capital group Safeguard Scientifics ($SFE). The firm, along with First Round Capital, White Owl Capital and Kapor Capital were investors in the Series A round earlier this year.
One out of every three hospital patients undergoes a needle stick two or more times daily through their hospitalization, according to the company. And more than one-quarter of blood draw attempts in adults require multiple needle sticks for a successful blood draw, while almost half of those in children do. Velano's device could potentially eliminate those ongoing needle sticks once it is in place on the PIV catheter.
- here is the release