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Implantable Sleep Apnea Device Under Development
Apnex Medical Inc., which is developing an implantable medical device to treat sleep apnea, has raised $14 million in venture capital, the company announced Thursday. -- http://twincities.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/2009/11/30/dai...
The Roseville firm will use the funds to develop a new version of its device, which is implanted above the pectoral muscle, much like a pacemaker. The product stimulates nerves along the lower jaw, helping to dilate throat muscles and open a patient’s airway.
Sleep apnea, a condition that causes the throat muscles to contract during sleep and obstruct breathing, affects about 100 million people worldwide, according to an Apnex press release.
The company also will use the funds to conduct clinical trials needed to bring the product to market, Apnex CEO Bob Atkinson said in a statement.
Venture-capital firms Domain Associates, New Enterprise Associates and Polaris Ventures participated in the recent round. Michael Berman, a Twin Cities entrepreneur, also participated. The recent round brings the total amount of venture financing raised by Apnex to about $30 million.
The most common treatment for sleep apnea is continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP). However, patients often find the treatment, in which a machine forces air down a patient’s throat, uncomfortable. They frequently stop using it.
Apnex, a company that spun off from medical-device incubator Prospex Medical, is not the only Twin Cities firm targeting the sleep apnea market. Medtronic Inc. spinoff Inspire Medical Systems Inc. also is developing technology to treat the condition and recently raised $17 million in venture capital.
The Roseville firm will use the funds to develop a new version of its device, which is implanted above the pectoral muscle, much like a pacemaker. The product stimulates nerves along the lower jaw, helping to dilate throat muscles and open a patient’s airway.
Sleep apnea, a condition that causes the throat muscles to contract during sleep and obstruct breathing, affects about 100 million people worldwide, according to an Apnex press release.
The company also will use the funds to conduct clinical trials needed to bring the product to market, Apnex CEO Bob Atkinson said in a statement.
Venture-capital firms Domain Associates, New Enterprise Associates and Polaris Ventures participated in the recent round. Michael Berman, a Twin Cities entrepreneur, also participated. The recent round brings the total amount of venture financing raised by Apnex to about $30 million.
The most common treatment for sleep apnea is continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP). However, patients often find the treatment, in which a machine forces air down a patient’s throat, uncomfortable. They frequently stop using it.
Apnex, a company that spun off from medical-device incubator Prospex Medical, is not the only Twin Cities firm targeting the sleep apnea market. Medtronic Inc. spinoff Inspire Medical Systems Inc. also is developing technology to treat the condition and recently raised $17 million in venture capital.
Views: 50
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Steven Y. Park, MD on
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This is similar technology to what's used on vagal nerve stimulation for severe epilepsy or depression. The stimulator is paced with the intercostal muscles, stimulating the hypoglossal nerve on one side. Preliminary results many years ago out of Johns Hopkins showed some significant improvement to various degrees in the AHI, but didn't cure sleep apnea outright in most cases. This procedure will most likely need to be combined with other procedures as part of multilevel surgery, since the soft palate and the nose are also usually involved. For early mild cases where sleep apnea is due mostly to tongue involvement, it may be more useful by itself (but probably overkill). Since it's a sophisticated electronic implant, there will be other issues to deal with. There are a number of other companies that are also working on similar concepts. It'll be interesting to see what the preliminary results show.
Personally, as a surgeon, I'm always a bit skeptical, especially when only one area is addressed. Obstructive sleep apnea begins with jaw/skeletal narrowing, which eventually leads to soft tissue collapse and obstruction of the entire upper airway from the nose to the tongue.
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Permalink Reply by Tim on
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It requires surgery to implant and and will probably be quite expensive. It is interesting that venture capital is being invested in sleep apnea device development, which is a very risky investment . Time will tell if any of these devices will be effective in a significant number of patients, and whether insurance will ever cover the cost.
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Permalink Reply by 99 on
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i think that the idea is good but it will never see the light of day and someone will make a lot of money without the product and it will be very difficult to prove fraud
anyone for tea
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" ... it will never see the light of day and someone will make a lot of money without the product and it will be very difficult to prove fraud"
It isn't fraud for the CPAP manufacturers to pay them to not build the product.
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it is fraud when they take money under false pretences and knowing that they are going to pocket the money they have about $30,000,000 now thirty million that is an awful lot of money
Tim said:" ... it will never see the light of day and someone will make a lot of money without the product and it will be very difficult to prove fraud"
It isn't fraud for the CPAP manufacturers to pay them to not build the product.
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Permalink Reply by Mike on
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I am also fascinated that this much venture capital financing -- $14 million ! -- is going into this one implantable device. Apart from all the risks you mentioned, it's also likely to be tied up in FDA evaluation for years. It will be quite a long time indeed before anyone makes a dime on this product, let alone a decent return on $14 million.
Tim said:It requires surgery to implant and and will probably be quite expensive. It is interesting that venture capital is being invested in sleep apnea device development, which is a very risky investment . Time will tell if any of these devices will be effective in a significant number of patients, and whether insurance will ever cover the cost.
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Permalink Reply by Banyon on
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Wow! Sympathy for the people who invest with venture capitalists?
Sorry, but that is what these people do and they don't want sympathy. They are looking (maybe gambling?) for high returns and they know they must take high risks to get high returns. Some of them also like the "thrill" of investing in innovative technology.
Dr. Park has highlighted some of the reasons this technology will likely fail. There is another thing I don't like about the technology. The device first senses a blockage and then stimulates the nerve. For my therapy, I want something that will prevent blockages.
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Permalink Reply by RockRpsgt on
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You never know maybe Onstar will jump on board. LOL
Tim said:" ... it will never see the light of day and someone will make a lot of money without the product and it will be very difficult to prove fraud"
It isn't fraud for the CPAP manufacturers to pay them to not build the product.
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I don't have any sympathy for venture capitalists, I find it amazing that they will risk large sums of money for things that are extreme long shots. During the dot com boom, it was amazing to see them investing money in silly web sites with business plans where the last two lines were "??????" and "PROFIT!".
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