Abbott to Acquire Evalve for $410M

Abbott Laboratories will purchase Evalve Inc., which manufactures devices for minimally invasive repair of cardiac mitral valves, according to the Abbott Park, Ill.-based firm.

The acquisition agreement includes an upfront payment of $320 million, plus an additional payment upon completion of certain regulatory milestones, for a total of up to $410 million.

The acquisition provides Abbott with a presence in the area of non-surgical treatment for structural heart disease, in which physicians use catheter-based devices to repair or replace basic structural components of the heart such as mitral and aortic valves.

“The acquisition of Evalve will provide Abbott with leading technology in theemerging field of minimally invasive heart valve repair and further broadensAbbott’s medical devices portfolio,” said John M. Capek, Ph.D., executive vice president of Abbott’s medical devices division. “Evalve is on the cutting edge with itsnon-surgical approach to treating structural heart disease.With thisbreakthrough mitral valve repair technology, physicians will be able to offertheir patients a minimally invasive alternative to open heart surgery…”

Evalve’s minimally invasive catheter-based MitraClip system, used to clip the leaflets of the mitral valve together to reduce regurgitation, is the first commercially available treatment option approved in Europe for non-surgical mitral valve repair for patients suffering from the effects of mitral regurgitation.The MitraClip system is an investigational device in the United States and is currently in clinical trials.

“Patients in Europe have benefited from having access to the MitraClip technology since it received CE Mark last year,” said Ferolyn Powell, president and CEO of Menlo Park, Calif.-based Evalve, who will continue to lead the Evalve team and will report to Hance after the acquisition closes.“We look forward to becoming a part of Abbott and working together to accelerate our business and expand our global reach to patients around the world with our minimally invasive technologies.”

Abbott expects the transaction to close in the fourth quarter of 2009.

The company also recently announced the acquisition of Irvine, Calif.-based Visiogen Inc., to help expand its vision care business.