A startup that treats conditions of the spine using minimally invasive devices announced Wednesday that it has raised $25 million in its third round of financing.Zyga Technology said that new investor Versant Ventures took part in the series C round and was joined by existing investors Split Rock Partners, Domain Associates and MB Ventures. The [...]

In a short news release issued Wednesday afternoon, Medtronic(NYSE:MDT)disclosed that the U.S. Department of Justice has closed its civil and criminal investigation into the company’s former blockbuster and controversial product Infuse.The investigation launched more than three years ago was into whether Medtronic illegally promoted the off-label use of the bone growth product. A spokesman said [...]

Mayo Clinic has 14 apps for the iPad and 15 on the iPhone.Until Monday, none of the free mobile medical apps were specifically meant for patients. The three free ones were mainly for doctors, alumni and people interested in medical research).In a phone interview, Dr. Sidna Tulledge-Scheitel, associate dean of e-health and medical director of [...]

When it comes to commercialization efforts of renal denervation therapy, St. Jude Medical (NYSE:STJ) is behind Medtronic (NYSE:MDT).But St. Jude Medical is hoping that slow and steady may still win the race in the quest to use this novel treatment in patients whose high blood pressure is not controlled by medication.The device maker announced Tuesday [...]

Operating rooms are sterile, most imaging files not so much. If a doctor is conducting a surgery that relies heavily on scans, he has to consult these images from the nonsterile part of an operating room. This means scrubbing in and out constantly, and sometimes taking short cuts that may not maintain the highest levels [...]

Inspire Medical Systems, which has developed an implantable neurostimulation device to treat sleep apnea, announced Friday that it has raised $14.5 million in a series C round.New investors include Medtronic, which licensed the technology to Inspire back in 2007, and TGap Venture, while existing investors, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, US Venture Partners, Synergy Life [...]

Anyone who is even slightly aware of the dynamics of the medical device industry knows that Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) and Edwards Lifesciences (NYSE:EW) are not exactly the best of friends.The Minnesota behemoth and its smaller California rival have engaged in bitter legal wrangling over intellectual property and patents. Especially with respect to the transcatheter aortic valve [...]

Knee brace manufacturer OrthoCor Medical announced Wednesday that it had closed a $2.4 million angel financing round.Previously, a regulatory filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission showed that the Minneapolis company had sought to raise $3 million.Along with the financing announcement, CEO John Dinusson said in a statement that the company is also launching [...]

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a new, smaller implantable cardioverter defibrillator made by St. Jude Medical (NYSE:STJ), the medical device maker announced Wednesday.The announcement comes less than a month after the device maker said that European regulators had given the nod to the same device — the Ellipse ICD.The Ellipse is the [...]

Mike Carusi, general partner at California venture capital company Advanced Technology Ventures, is a firm believer that you can strike gold by investing in early stage companies.He is a contrarian given that most medical technology venture capitalists would rather shun them. Conventional thinking deems it too risky to invest in younger healthcare companies who will [...]