Business Wire05.01.17
Heart Test Laboratories Inc. (HTL) is strengthening its Board of Directors with the addition of John Q. Adams Sr. and John D. Owen.
“We are delighted to welcome two highly successful and experienced executives as Independent Members of Heart Test Labs’ Board of Directors. Their appointments come as product launch is imminent, and we position for an IPO or institutional capital in the coming months,” said Andrew Simpson, board chairman. “Their experience and track records of success in healthcare and strategic business management will help guide HTL in scaling around the world and to maximize the opportunity for the MyoVista, a breakthrough in the early detection of heart disease.”
Adams is a serial entrepreneur and has enjoyed a long career in the healthcare industry. In 1969, he founded Baylor Laboratories Inc. which he sold to the Norwich Eaton Pharmaceutical division of Morton Norwich Inc. in 1980. He then founded Allerderm Inc., which was purchased by Vibrac Inc. in 1985. That same year, Adams founded Adams Laboratories Inc. and sold it in 1992 to Medeva PLC, a listed company in the United Kingdom following which he served on Medeva’s Board of Directors until 1997 and as an executive director, holding various offices, until 1995. He later repurchased certain assets from Medeva to reform Adams Laboratories Inc. in 1999, where he served as CEO until 2003. Adams Laboratories changed its name to Adams Respiratory Therapeutics Inc., with Adams serving as chairman until October 2005, having led the compay through a highly successful initial public offering (IPO). Adams Respiratory developed prescription and non-prescription pharmaceuticals for the treatment of respiratory disorders and diseases, including Mucinex, and was subsequently acquired by Reckitt Benckiser Group in late 2007.
Adams continues to be an active investor in healthcare companies and retains memberships and board positions in several professional and philanthropic organizations, including the American College of Allergy and the Vanderbilt University Voice Center. In July 2007, he was elected to the Board of Trustees for Heidelberg College in Tiffin, Ohio, and in April 2009 he was inducted into the Hall of Excellence of the Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges. He is also an Honorary Fellow of the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. Adams has a degree in Biology from Heidelberg College.
Owen was a co-founder of Jet Blue Airways and was its chief financial officer (CFO) for many years. During his tenure Jet Blue went from a start-up to a successful NASDAQ listed company with more than $2 billion in revenue. Owen managed multiple public and private funding rounds as well as its IPO. Prior to JetBlue, he served as treasurer for Southwest Airlines from 1984 to 1998. Subsequently, Owen served as CFO for Volotea Airlines during its startup, which included raising 65 million euros in equity financing before its commencement of flight operations in 2012. He has a bachelor of arts degree in Economics from SMU, and an M.B.A. in finance from the Wharton School, where he was a Mayer Fellow. Owen is currently a full time private investor with a particular interest in the medical sector. He also chairs the Audit Committee of HTL.
HTL uses patented proprietary technology to develop medical devices that focus on the early detection of heart disease. Its first product, MyoVista, represents a major clinical breakthrough in diagnostic electrocardiography. It significantly improves clinical efficacy, compared to conventional ECGs, in the early identification of ischemic and other cardiac dysfunctions.
MyoVista applies advanced digital signal processing to create a high-sensitivity ECG with new proprietary informatics. It is ideally suited to both primary care and clinical environments in hospitals and outpatient care centers. MyoVista uses standard 12-lead resting ECG protocols to characterize cardiac dysfunction with high accuracy, including for asymptomatic patients. It also displays standard 12-lead ECG information, including traditional interpretive analysis. MyoVista promises to bridge the “diagnostic gap” found in heart disease today, namely the identification of “at risk” patients before suffering an adverse cardiac event, such as myocardial infarction.
The device has a 15.6-inch high-resolution touchscreen display and incorporates many features commonly associated with a tablet device requiring minimal user training as well as easy and intuitive use.
Heart Disease results in 7 million deaths annually worldwide, more than all cancers combined; it represents the largest healthcare expenditure of any disease. Heart Test Laboratories is a privately held U.S. corporation based in Westlake, Texas.
“We are delighted to welcome two highly successful and experienced executives as Independent Members of Heart Test Labs’ Board of Directors. Their appointments come as product launch is imminent, and we position for an IPO or institutional capital in the coming months,” said Andrew Simpson, board chairman. “Their experience and track records of success in healthcare and strategic business management will help guide HTL in scaling around the world and to maximize the opportunity for the MyoVista, a breakthrough in the early detection of heart disease.”
Adams is a serial entrepreneur and has enjoyed a long career in the healthcare industry. In 1969, he founded Baylor Laboratories Inc. which he sold to the Norwich Eaton Pharmaceutical division of Morton Norwich Inc. in 1980. He then founded Allerderm Inc., which was purchased by Vibrac Inc. in 1985. That same year, Adams founded Adams Laboratories Inc. and sold it in 1992 to Medeva PLC, a listed company in the United Kingdom following which he served on Medeva’s Board of Directors until 1997 and as an executive director, holding various offices, until 1995. He later repurchased certain assets from Medeva to reform Adams Laboratories Inc. in 1999, where he served as CEO until 2003. Adams Laboratories changed its name to Adams Respiratory Therapeutics Inc., with Adams serving as chairman until October 2005, having led the compay through a highly successful initial public offering (IPO). Adams Respiratory developed prescription and non-prescription pharmaceuticals for the treatment of respiratory disorders and diseases, including Mucinex, and was subsequently acquired by Reckitt Benckiser Group in late 2007.
Adams continues to be an active investor in healthcare companies and retains memberships and board positions in several professional and philanthropic organizations, including the American College of Allergy and the Vanderbilt University Voice Center. In July 2007, he was elected to the Board of Trustees for Heidelberg College in Tiffin, Ohio, and in April 2009 he was inducted into the Hall of Excellence of the Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges. He is also an Honorary Fellow of the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. Adams has a degree in Biology from Heidelberg College.
Owen was a co-founder of Jet Blue Airways and was its chief financial officer (CFO) for many years. During his tenure Jet Blue went from a start-up to a successful NASDAQ listed company with more than $2 billion in revenue. Owen managed multiple public and private funding rounds as well as its IPO. Prior to JetBlue, he served as treasurer for Southwest Airlines from 1984 to 1998. Subsequently, Owen served as CFO for Volotea Airlines during its startup, which included raising 65 million euros in equity financing before its commencement of flight operations in 2012. He has a bachelor of arts degree in Economics from SMU, and an M.B.A. in finance from the Wharton School, where he was a Mayer Fellow. Owen is currently a full time private investor with a particular interest in the medical sector. He also chairs the Audit Committee of HTL.
HTL uses patented proprietary technology to develop medical devices that focus on the early detection of heart disease. Its first product, MyoVista, represents a major clinical breakthrough in diagnostic electrocardiography. It significantly improves clinical efficacy, compared to conventional ECGs, in the early identification of ischemic and other cardiac dysfunctions.
MyoVista applies advanced digital signal processing to create a high-sensitivity ECG with new proprietary informatics. It is ideally suited to both primary care and clinical environments in hospitals and outpatient care centers. MyoVista uses standard 12-lead resting ECG protocols to characterize cardiac dysfunction with high accuracy, including for asymptomatic patients. It also displays standard 12-lead ECG information, including traditional interpretive analysis. MyoVista promises to bridge the “diagnostic gap” found in heart disease today, namely the identification of “at risk” patients before suffering an adverse cardiac event, such as myocardial infarction.
The device has a 15.6-inch high-resolution touchscreen display and incorporates many features commonly associated with a tablet device requiring minimal user training as well as easy and intuitive use.
Heart Disease results in 7 million deaths annually worldwide, more than all cancers combined; it represents the largest healthcare expenditure of any disease. Heart Test Laboratories is a privately held U.S. corporation based in Westlake, Texas.