San Clemente-based ReShape Medical Inc., upon receiving regulatory approval and introducing its device for nonsurgical weight loss, wasted no time in finding a local provider for it.
UC Irvine Health, the University of California-Irvine’s medical enterprises, recently started offering the ReShape Integrated Dual Balloon as what it characterized as filling in the gap between dieting and weight-loss surgery.
“Obesity is a complex condition, and this treatment option offers our patients a safe and effective supplement to diet and exercise,” Dr. Ninh Nguyen, UC Irvine Health’s chief of bariatric surgery, said in a news release.
UC Irvine Medical Center, a teaching hospital in Orange, was among eight sites that participated in a clinical study prior to the device’s Food and Drug Administration approval.
Trial results were presented last year at the annual meeting of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery. The trial showed that patients who had the ReShape procedure lost 2.3 times as much weight as those who received only diet and exercise counseling.
ReShape said it was introducing the device in select markets as doctors and allied health professionals are trained on the procedure and its support program.
Integrated Dual Balloon is recommended for people with a body mass index of between 30 and 40 and who don’t want or qualify for bariatric surgery. It is a cash-pay procedure.
The balloon is inserted into a patient’s stomach endoscopically and filled with saline. It remains in the body for six months.
ReShape had been building to the launch of its device for some time. The company appointed Michael Moehring as its vice president of sales in June.
He was previously with Pivot Medical, a company that’s now part of Kalamazoo, Mich.-based Stryker Corp. He built a sales and management team at Pivot that commercialized hip implants and hip arthroscopic surgical instruments.
Ex-Avanir Exec to Otic
Otic Pharma Ltd., an Israeli company with a domestic office in Irvine, named Gregory Flesher its chief executive.
Otic is developing an extended-release formulation of antibiotic ciprofloxacin to treat a disorder called “swimmer’s ear,” an inflammation of the external ear canal.
There are some 2.5 million cases of swimmer’s ear in the U.S. per year, according to the company.
Flesher was most recently chief business officer for Aliso Viejo-based Avanir Pharmaceuticals Inc., which was acquired this year by Japan-based Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co. for $3.5 billion. Flesher’s tenure also includes working for Thousand Oaks-based Amgen Inc. and Eli Lilly & Co. in Indianapolis.
Cryoport Raises $6.8M
Lake Forest-based Cryoport Inc. said late last month that it’s raised $6.8 million from a sale of common stocks and warrants.
Cryoport uses cryogenic technology to ship lifesciences products cold.
The company said it was going to use the proceeds for working capital.
Its markets include immunotherapies, animal health, vaccine manufacturers, cell lines, stem cells, clinical research organizations, and reproductive medicine.
Startup in Talks With Novartis
Irvine-based EP Global Communications Inc. said late last month that executives from Alcon Inc., a unit of Switzerland-based Novartis AG, have contacted it about technology related to electronic contact lenses.
EP, which trades on the low-profile over-the-counter bulletin board, mentioned that it also is negotiating with CooperVision, a unit of the Cooper Cos., which was once based in Lake Forest and now is in Pleasanton.
Novartis previously partnered with Mountain View-based Google Inc. to create what it called “smart contact lenses.”
Novartis Chief Executive Joe Jimenez has said in published reports that he believes the coming market for electronic lenses could be worth tens of billions of dollars over the next several years.
Bits & Pieces
Orange County Global Medical Center, previously known as Western Medical Center-Santa Ana, was recognized by the U.S. Department for Health and Human Services for achievement in promoting enrollment in organ donor registries. The hospital was among 121 in California that received the recognition. … Prestige Surgery Center in Newport Beach received accreditation from the Chicago-based American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities. The designation covers things such as operating room environment, policy and procedures; general safety; medical records; and anesthesia.
