Southern California devicemaker Vertos Medical has been around a decade, and has a clinically validated treatment for lumbar spinal stenosis. It’s raised many dollars in venture financing, and is in the midst of a new equity round. This begs the question – when will Vertos IPO?
Vertos is aiming to raise $12 million, according to a regulatory filing, and has raised about half of that so far from 21 investors. The company has developed a treatment to allay symptoms of lumbar spinal stenosis, with a simple outpatient procedure that it’s commercializing in the U.S. and Europe.
The company’s well-financed – it closed out a $23 million Series E in 2013, and has been around and raising funds since 2005.
Given the robust funding, the 10-year timeline and a wide spectrum of investors, this begs the question – when will Vertos secure an exit? It’s still raising cash, sure, but the product has already hit the market. It’s time.
Previous investors in Vertos have included ONSET Ventures, CHL Medical Partners, Foundation Medical Partners and Awelda Venture Partners.
Lumbar spinal stenosis – a narrowing of the spinal canal – is a common issue among those over 50, choking the nerves in that region and causing significant pain.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
Vertos is conducting a clinical trial that compares its MILD procedure to epidural spinal injections. It’s projected to wrap up in December 2016. It’s already been tested out in 11 prior clinical trials.
[PHOTO: Wikimedia Commons]
