Abbott Secures Two Catheter-Based Medical Device Companies
By Jof Enriquez,
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Looking to revitalize its medical device business, Abbott Laboratories moved into the fast-growing electrophysiology market by acquiring heart rhythm company Topera Inc. for $250 million upfront. It also secured the right to buy ablation therapy company Advanced Cardiac Therapeutics Inc. in the future for an undisclosed sum.
Topera has developed a unique rotor-identification system consisting of a diagnostic catheter and mapping software for detecting a common heart rhythm disorder called atrial fibrillation. The system helps cardiologists identify specific areas of the heart where the abnormal electrical impulses originate, and then target those areas for ablation procedures, according to the Wall Street Journal. The Topeka acquisition potentially includes milestone payments, and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year.
“There is significant room to use advanced rotor-identification technologies to improve the success rate and reduce the need for multiple ablation procedures, and thus improve the health of people with atrial fibrillation,” John M. Capek, executive VP of Abbott’s medical devices business, said in an Abbott company statement.
According to the Chicago Tribune, some 30 million people worldwide, many of them seniors, suffer from arrhythmias. A rapidly aging demographic presents new opportunities for Abbott to tap into.
“I think it really does come down to there’s a significant number of patients who have this atrial fibrillation who are in need of a therapy,” Capek told the Tribune. “This is a very exciting technology to enable this and we’re excited to get into this growing market segment.
Separately, Abbott is also buying another California-based electrophysiology company, Advanced Cardiac Therapeutics (ACT), at a later date. Financial terms of that deal were not disclosed by Abbott. ACT is developing a type of ablation catheter that improves the safety of ablation procedures, according to the WSJ.
“The Topera acquisition and our agreement with ACT provide a foundational entry into the large, high-growth electrophysiology market, with differentiated technologies that can transform the way physicians treat people with complex heart rhythm disorders,” Capek said in Abbott’s press release. Abbott estimates the catheter-based electrophysiology market to be worth $3 billion annually, and to grow by double-digits each year.
In the Tribune article, Abbott CEO Miles White was noted last week as saying that he intends to improve the company’s medical devices business after weak third-quarter earnings that dropped 44 percent compared to last year. The company’s medical device business dipped by 1 percent from one year ago, amounting to $1.3 billion in sales during the period.