August 14, 2012
Cleveland Heart, Inc., a Cleveland Clinic Innovations spin-off company, has received a $30 million investment that will fund further development and clinical trials for a total artificial heart.
Power Heart Consortium, a Korean private-equity group, made the investment to further the development of the SmartHeart Total Artificial Heart, which is a total artificial heart and left ventricular assist device (LVAD) designed for long-term, durable use in patients suffering from biventricular heart failure.
The investment will allow Cleveland Heart, Inc. – a joint venture between Cleveland Clinic and TransWorld Medical Devices, LLC – to continue international clinical trials, expand laboratory research and implement new design concepts for the SmartHeart.
Cleveland Clinic Innovations, the corporate venturing arm of Cleveland Clinic, is responsible for company creation, business development and commercialization of all medical technology throughout Cleveland Clinic. The $30 million investment is the largest that a Cleveland Clinic Innovations spin-off has received from a single investor. Cleveland Clinic also has invested in Cleveland Heart.
“Cardiovascular disease continues to be one of the leading causes of death in the world and the No. 1 killer in the U.S.,” said Thomas Graham, MD, Chief Innovation Officer and Justice Family Chair in Medical Innovations and Cleveland Clinic Innovations. “Developing innovations to treat patients who are living with heart failure is an imperative, and this investment will enable Cleveland Heart to further develop and extend its research.”
Roughly 23 million people worldwide suffer from heart failure, with two million new cases each year. About 50 percent of patients with Class IV heart failure die within one year of its onset. About 2,500 patients in the United States receive a heart transplant annually, and more than 25,000 people die every year while waiting for a donor heart.
Since it was established in 2000, Cleveland Clinic Innovations has filed over 1,600 patents, has more than 300 active licenses and has 48 spin-off companies that have received more than $600 million in equity investment. Nearly 1,000 jobs have been generated as a result of Cleveland Clinic Innovations and its spin-offs, having a significant impact on the economic growth in Northeast Ohio.
“These resources will enable Cleveland Heart to significantly advance the development of its total artificial heart system that has the potential to dramatically improve the lives of thousands of heart failure patients,” said Chris Coburn, Executive Director of Cleveland Clinic Innovations. “It is wonderful to see how this investment will advance this breakthrough technology developed with great effort by Cleveland Clinic cardiac surgeons, engineers and cardiologists.”
About Cleveland Clinic
Cleveland Clinic is a nonprofit multispecialty academic medical center that integrates clinical and hospital care with research and education. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, it was founded in 1921 by four renowned physicians with a vision of providing outstanding patient care based upon the principles of cooperation, compassion and innovation. Cleveland Clinic has pioneered many medical breakthroughs, including coronary artery bypass surgery and the first face transplant in the United States. U.S. News & World Report consistently names Cleveland Clinic as one of the nation’s best hospitals in its annual “America’s Best Hospitals” survey. About 2,800 full-time salaried physicians and researchers and 11,000 nurses represent 120 medical specialties and subspecialties. Cleveland Clinic Health System includes a main campus near downtown Cleveland, eight community hospitals and 18 Family Health Centers in Northeast Ohio, Cleveland Clinic Florida, the Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health in Las Vegas, Cleveland Clinic Canada, and opening in 2013, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. In 2010, there were 4 million visits throughout the Cleveland Clinic health system and 167,000 hospital admissions. Patients came for treatment from every state and from more than 100 countries. Visit us at www.clevelandclinic.org. Follow us at www.twitter.com/ClevelandClinic.
Media Contact:
Joe Milicia, 216.636.5873, milicij2@ccf.org