EndoGastric Solutions Secures $50 Million In Financing

EndoGastric Solutions (EGS) has secured additional new financing of up to $50 million, led by CRG (formerly Capital Royalty L.P.) and existing EGS investors including Advanced Technology Ventures, Canaan Partners, Chicago Growth Partners, Foundation Medical Partners, and Radius Ventures.

“EGS has demonstrated that the strong data and dramatic shifts in healthcare economics support increased access to their proprietary TIF procedure using EsophyX technology,” said Charles Tate, chairman of CRG. “Our investment in their business will support growth and build substantial value in the company.”

EGS plans to use proceeds from the financing to begin broad-scale commercialization, as well as making further R&D investments in next generation products used in their TIF procedure.

“Now that significant clinical data and reimbursement hurdles have been addressed, it is time to focus incremental resources into expanding access to millions of chronic GERD sufferers who could benefit from our TIF procedure,” said Skip Baldino, president and CEO of EndoGastric Solutions. “We are pleased to have the confidence of CRG, an investment partner renowned for its strategic investments in healthcare, as well as our long-term investors supporting our commercialization plans.”

EGS recently announced the Federal Register has posted coding and payment information specific to the new Current Procedural Terminology (CPT), allowing patients to more easily receive access to treatment for GERD. Physicians and hospitals will be able to reference CPT Code 43210 EGD esophagogastric fundoplasty and APC 5331 Complex GI Procedures for TIF procedures as of Jan. 1.

Founded in 2003, CRG (previously known as Capital Royalty L.P.) is a healthcare-focused investment firm with more than $2 billion of assets under management that provides capital to healthcare companies primarily through structured debt and senior secured loans. CRG works across the spectrum of life science products and technologies and targets investment sizes ranging between $20 million and $200 million. The firm partners with commercial-stage healthcare companies to provide flexible financing solutions so they can achieve their growth objectives. CRG is headquartered in Houston, Texas, with offices in Boulder, Colo., and New York, N.Y.

CPT codes are a listing of descriptive terms and identifying codes for reporting medical services and procedures. The purpose of CPT is to provide a uniform language that accurately describes medical, surgical, and diagnostic services, and thereby serves as an effective means for reliable nationwide communication among physicians and other healthcare providers, patients, and third parties. CPT is registered trademark of the American Medical Association.

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a chronic condition in which the gastroesophageal valve (GEV) allows gastric contents to reflux (wash backwards) into the esophagus, causing heartburn and possible injury to the esophageal lining. The stomach produces hydrochloric acid and other digestive enzymes after a meal to aid in the digestion of food. The cells that line the stomach are coated with a protective mucus that can withstand gastric contents, while the cells that line the esophagus lack the same protection.

GERD is the most common gastrointestinal-related diagnosis made by physicians during clinical visits in the United States. It is estimated that pain and discomfort from acid reflux impacts over 80 million people at least once per month in the United States. The standard recommendations for symptomatic GERD patients include lifestyle changes (e.g., diet, scheduled eating times, and sleeping positions) and escalating doses of prescription medications for prolonged periods of time. Long-term, maximum-dose usage of prescription medications has been linked to a variety of other health complications.

Performed without the need for external incisions through the skin, the TIF procedure offers patients who require an anatomical repair another treatment option to correct the underlying cause of GERD. Studies show that for up to three years after the TIF procedure esophageal inflammation (esophagitis) is eliminated and most patients are able to stop using daily PPI medications to control symptoms.

More than 17,000 TIF patients have been treated worldwide since EsophyX device clearance in 2007. More than 50 peer-review papers from over 40 centers have been published documenting consistent outcomes on over 800 unique study patients.

The original EsophyX device was cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2007. EGS launched the third generation EsophyX device, the EsophyX Z in 2015. The technology has continued to evolve and is a clinically-backed tool for physician use in the treatment of GERD. The EsophyX technology now enables surgeons and gastroenterologists to use a wider selection of endoscopes–including low profile and larger high-definition models—to treat the underlying anatomical cause of GERD. The EsophyX technology is used to reconstruct the gastroesophageal valve (GEV) and restore its function as a barrier, preventing stomach acids refluxing back into the esophagus. The device is inserted through the patient’s mouth with direct visual guidance from an endoscope.

Based in Redmond, Wash., EndoGastric Solutions Inc. develops and commercializes evidence-based, incisionless surgical technology for the treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease.