An under-the-radar medical device startup specializing in the endovascular treatment of cerebral aneurysms has raised $1.1 million and is planning on bringing its devices to market in the second half of this year.
A company rep for Blockade Medical said he couldn’t provide any more detail than that the company is focused on developing products to treat hemorrhagic stroke and that some regulatory approvals are expected this year, with marketing efforts to begin this summer.
About 13 percent of stroke cases in the U.S. are hemorrhagic stroke, caused by a ruptured brain aneurysm or an arteriovenous malformation. Nearly 40 percent of these cases are fatal and two-thirds of those who survive suffer permanent neurological deficit.
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Traditional treatment of hemorrhagic strokes has involved surgery or the less-invasive endovascular coiling, which treats aneurysms by threading a catheter and coils to the aneurysm through the vascular system.
The market for the endovascular treatment of cerebral aneurysms was expected to double between 2008 and 2015, according to a Medtech Ventures report. Pulsar Vascular, Covidien and NFOCUS Neuromedical are just a few of the other medical device companies working in this space.
According a recent U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Southern California-based Blockade has raised nearly all of its planned $1.25 million since last July from 17 investors.
