TriVascular Appoints New CEO

TriVascular Inc., a Santa Rosa, Calif.-based medical device company focused on endovascular aortic repair, has appointed Christopher G. Chavez as chairman, CEO and president effective immediately. Former CEO Michael V. Chobotov, Ph.D., now will serve as chief technology officer and will continue to serve on the board of directors.

Chavez’s pedigree is impressive—he comes from St. Jude Medical, where he was president of the neoromodulation division. Chavez joined St. Jude when the company acquired Advanced Neuromodulation Systems in 2005, where he had served as CEO, president and director for 14 years. Prior to that he worked for 17 years at Johnson & Johnson, most recently as vice president and general manager of the worldwide infection prevention business. Chavez previously has held positions as chairman of the Medical Device Manufacturers Association, chairman of the Dallas/Fort Worth Health Industry Council, and as a board member of Advanced Medical Optics Inc., which was acquired by Abbott Laboratories in 2009.

Chavez earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School in Boston, Mass. Although he leaves St. Jude at a time when the company is tussling with competitors and facing questions about the safety of its cardiac devices, there is no word that Chavez is leaving for any related reasons.

“Chris has a proven track record leading high technology, growth-oriented medical device businesses,” said departing CEO and co-founder Chobotov. Chavez expressed his enthusiasm for leading the company “through the commercial growth stage of its journey.”

Founded in 1998, TriVascular was purchased by Boston Scientific Corp. in 2005. The Ovation Abdominal Stent Graft System, a low profile endovascular graft for the treatment of abdominal aortic aneurysms, is TriVascular’s flagship product.