TAMPA,
Fla., July 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Valcare
Medical, Inc., a leading innovator in transcatheter-based mitral
solutions, today announced the formation of a Scientific Advisory
Board (SAB) comprised of distinguished experts. The SAB will
provide expert insight and guidance while helping the Company
further advance its research and development initiatives for the
AMEND mitral valve repair device. The AMEND mitral annuloplasty
ring has been designed to treat patients suffering from severe
mitral regurgitation not deemed suitable for surgery.
"We are excited to be joined and supported by some of the
world's leading pioneers in mitral valve therapies," said Dr. David
Meerkin, Valcare Medical CMO. "Their combined experience and
collective insights will greatly assist Valcare at this critical
point as we significantly broaden and deepen our clinical
experience."
Members of the Valcare Medical Scientific Advisory Board
include:
Dr. Isaac George, MD
joined New York Presbyterian/Columbia
University Medical Center in the Department of Surgery in
July of 2001 as a resident in general surgery following his
graduation from Duke University School
of Medicine. Prior to receiving his MD, Dr. George completed a B.S.
in Mechanical Engineering at Massachusetts
Institute of Technology in 1997. Dr. George also completed a
fellowship program in cardiothoracic surgery in 2011 as well as a
fellowship program in interventional cardiology in 2012. Dr. George
is an Associate Professor of Surgery and Medicine, and the Surgical
Director of Structural Heart of the NYP health system. He is one of
the few physicians in the world trained in both cardiac surgery and
interventional cardiology. He is an expert in the most current and
innovative procedures including Transcatheter Aortic Valve
Replacement (TAVR), transcatheter valvular mitral valve repair
(Mitraclip, Edge to Edge), transcatheter mitral and tricuspid valve
replacement and surgical TAVR removal/explantation.
Dr. Scott Lim, MD, is a
Professor of Medicine & Pediatrics at the University of Virginia and the University of British Columbia. He has developed a
career focusing on novel therapies for heart valve, structural,
congenital, and heart failure therapies. He has served as national
primary investigator on transcatheter aortic, mitral, and pulmonary
valve trials, as well as worked with multiple early-stage novel
cardiac device therapies, particularly in mitral and tricuspid
valve disease. In addition to authoring more than 250 scientific
publications, 500 presentations, and 50 book chapters, Dr. Lim has
been the founding editor through 5 editions of the most popular
textbook on congenital heart disease, the Field Guide to Congenital
Heart Disease & Repair. He has also spent more than two decades
leading a charitable organization to teach cardiac disease care to
physicians in developing countries.
Dr. Paul Sorajja, MD is
the Roger L. and Lynn C. Headrick
Family Chair of the Valve Science Center at the Minneapolis Heart
Institute Foundation, and a cardiologist at Minneapolis Heart
Institute® where he serves as the Director of the Center for Valve
and Structural Heart Disease. Dr. Sorajja's expertise is
interventional cardiology, with a focus on bringing the latest
innovative technologies to patients with valvular and structural
heart disease. He was part of the team that performed the first
transcatheter mitral valve replacement (TMVR) in the US and has the
largest worldwide experience with the therapy. Dr. Sorajja
currently serves as a national investigator for TMVR and for
clinical trials in percutaneous treatment for tricuspid
regurgitation. He has served on multiple national practice
committees for valvular heart disease and hypertrophic
cardiomyopathy. Dr. Sorajja has published more than 250 manuscripts
as well as several books. He routinely lectures at national and
international medical conferences and has received awards for his
expertise in medical education. Dr. Sorajja is also highly active
in developing intellectual property in these areas.
Dr. Azeem Latib, MD,
Director of Structural Heart Interventions, Montefiore Health
System, New York. Azeem is a
world-leading expert in interventional cardiology, with a clinical
focus on complex coronary interventions as well as transcatheter
aortic, mitral, and tricuspid interventions. Following his clinical
interests, Dr. Latib's research centers on transcatheter aortic,
mitral, and tricuspid interventions with a focus on device
innovation. In addition, he performs research on drug-coated
balloons, drug-eluting stents, and challenging lesion subsets.
Dr. Federico DeMarco, MD,
PhD is the head of the Structural Heart Program and of the
Interventional, Valvular and Structural Heart Interventions Unit in
Centro Cardiologico Monzino in Milan. He trained in Interventional Cardiology
at the Institut Cardiovasculaire Paris Sud in Massy, France, between 2005 and 2007, and until 2015
he worked as a senior staff interventional cardiologist at Niguarda
Hospital in Milan. From 2015 to
2022 he helped build the largest Structural Heart Interventions
program in Italy in Policlinico
San Donato in Milan. His
interventional experience is extensive, spacing from complex
coronary interventions to TAVR, transcatheter mitral and tricuspid
valve repair and replacement, PFO and LAA occlusion, peripheral
interventions, and a wide variety of other endovascular
interventions. He has been collaborating with multiple companies
since 2012, both on product design and development with engineers
and on early clinical experience with various device trials and
first in man procedures. He authored and co-authored over 150
peer-reviewed publications and book chapters on coronary, aortic
and mitral interventions and has a strong interest in new
endovascular technology.
"We are honored to have these accomplished mitral valve experts
join Valcare Medical's Scientific Advisory Board," said
Steve Sandweg, Valcare Medical CEO.
"Each of these individuals has made significant contributions and
helped pioneer breakthroughs in the treatment of mitral valve
disease. We look forward to leveraging the vast expertise of our
SAB to help drive Valcare's clinical and regulatory strategy."
The innovative AMEND mitral valve repair device is a closed,
D-shaped semi-rigid annuloplasty ring with proprietary anchoring
capabilities. AMEND has been designed to replicate the efficacy of
the traditional annuloplasty rings used to treat mitral
regurgitation during open-heart surgery, but is implanted via a
less invasive, percutaneous approach.
The AMEND device is investigational and limited to
investigational use only. The products are not available for sale
or commercial distribution.
About Valcare Medical
At Valcare Medical, our mission is to transform mitral valve
therapy through the development of advanced, minimally invasive
solutions. Our goal is to eliminate the need for open-heart surgery
in patients with severe mitral regurgitation. We aim to minimize
patient risk and maximize procedural outcomes by providing strong
clinical evidence for the effectiveness of our technologies. We
aspire to improve patients' quality of life while increasing life
expectancy by offering a safer and more effective alternative to
traditional surgical methods.
Contact: Info@Valcaremedical.com
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SOURCE Valcare Medical