Funding Will Support Development of Centerline Biomedical's GPS-Like Vascular Navigation System

August 31, 2015—Centerline Biomedical, Inc. announced that it recently closed on a $1.7-million seed investment to advance the development of its interventional vascular navigation system. The funding provides resources for the next phase of development and additional testing of Centerline’s radiation-free navigation system for use in endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR).

According to the company, Centerline Biomedical’s intraoperative positioning system (iOPS) is a GPS-like visualization software system paired with the company’s sensor-equipped catheters and guidewires to guide an interventionist through vasculature. The system delivers real-time, three-dimensional guidance, aiming to make endovascular procedures safer, more accurate, more efficient, and more cost effective. The platform technology initially will be directed to the EVAR market, but the company plans to apply the technology to a variety of vascular procedures.

The iOPS device is based on research from surgeons at the Cleveland Clinic’s Heart & Vascular Institute who teamed up with researchers at the Cleveland Clinic’s Lerner Research Institute to develop this radiation-free system that seeks to alleviate limitations of current x-ray guided procedures that can last several hours while exposing patients and medical providers to significant amounts of radiation. X-ray imaging also provides poor visualization, thereby making navigation and positioning a challenge, noted the company.

Matthew Eagleton, MD, who is a vascular surgeon at the Cleveland Clinic and serves as Chair of Centerline’s Medical Advisory Board, commented in the company’s press release, “The opportunity to positively impact a growing number of patients and providers alike is significant. Centerline’s platform technology solves an immediate need and has the ability to transform many vascular and nonvascular procedures by reducing radiation, improving outcomes and saving costs."