The assets of Alsius Corp., an Irvine medical device maker, are being bought by Zoll Medical Corp. of Chelmsford, Mass, for $12 million.
Alsius makes catheters and other instruments used in hospitals to control patients’ body temperature.
Zoll said that it planned to consolidate Alsius at its operations in Sunnyvale in the Bay area.
In a release, William Worthen, Alsius’ chief executive, said the company had “considered various options for Alsius in today’s tough financing and capital spending environment” and determined that selling to Zoll was in the best interests of stockholders.
Alsius’ shares are off some 95% over the past year with a recent market value of $3.4 million.
Alsius, which has 106 workers, plans to pay debt down with the proceeds and distribute $7.6 million to its shareholders.
Alsius, founded in 1991, had planned to go public in early 2006, filing paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a $40 million initial public offering.
Six months later, Alsius went public through a sale to Ithaka Acquisition Corp, a New York-based “blank check” company that was formed to acquire an operating business in healthcare.
Alsius and Zoll were involved in a dispute over temperature-control patents prior to the deal.
