Lombard Medical Adds AtriCure CEO to Board

Lombard Medical Inc. a medical device company focused on endovascular aneurysm repair of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs), has added Michael H. Carrel to the company’s board of directors. Carrel is the president and CEO of AtriCure Inc., which makes surgical treatments for atrial fibrillation and left atrial appendage management. 

Since joining AtriCure in November 2012, Carrel has led the company through significant revenue growth including an increase of 31 percent over 2013. Prior to joining AtriCure, he was the president and CEO of Vital Images, a publicly-traded medical imaging software company from 2008 until it was sold to Toshiba in 2011. He stayed on as CEO of the new business unit within Toshiba until the integration was successfully completed in 2012. Carrel originally joined Vital Images in 2005 as chief operating and financial officer. During his time at Vital, he worked extensively with leading physicians in numerous specialties to bring new products to market. Under his leadership, the company raised approximately $100 million in equity financing, grew revenue and profitability, increased global market share and expanded its presence to over 90 countries.

“Mike is an industry veteran with an excellent track record for growing organizations, driving corporate development activities and successfully building clinical, educational and commercial platforms to create value for his shareholders,” said Raymond W. Cohen, non-executive chairman of Lombard Medical. “It was immediately clear that Mike exceeded our criteria for a board member as he is a seasoned executive with extensive experience growing commercial stage companies. Mike’s experience managing AtriCure’s growth and driving adoption in the atrial fibrillation market is analogous with Lombard Medical’s vision in the endovascular aneurysm repair market. No doubt that Mike will add tangible value as a director for Lombard Medical.”

“I am enthusiastic about joining the board of directors of Lombard Medical, a company at its inflection point of growth that is making great strides in capturing market share in the worldwide AAA market, which is a large and still under-penetrated market,” said Carrel. “I look forward to working with the board and the executive team at Lombard Medical to help execute on a solid strategy to expand commercialization and further develop its product pipeline.”

In addition to his new position as a non-executive director on the Lombard Medical board, Carrel also serves as a member of the board of directors of AtriCure and the Cincinnati and Minneapolis chapters of the American Heart Association. He holds a B.S. in accounting from Pennsylvania State University and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.