V Wave Marks First Implantation of Heart Device

V Wave Ltd., which has developed an implantable shunt for the treatment of congestive heart failure, recently implanted the device in a patient for the first time.

Founded in 2009, the Israeli company has developed a miniature shunt, which is implanted by catheterization into the left ventricle, to reduce the pressure on the muscle controlling the blood flow between the heart chambers in patients who frequently are hospitalized with heart attacks.

The product is an implant, which means that the regulatory track is complicated, and the first human implant is therefore an important milestone for the company. The shunt was developed by Prof. Prof. Ran Kornowski, director of the Cardiology Department at Rabin Medical Center, Beilinson Hospital. The company said the heart patient who received the implant successfully underwent the surgery and reported improvement in his condition.

V Wave was founded by Yaacov Nitzan and is run by Erez Rosenfeld. It has raised $6.5 million from BRM Capital, Pontifax, and private investor Ascher Shmulewitz, M.D.

One in 25 people in Western countries suffer from congestive heart failure. Current treatment is mainly based on the management of body fluids — i.e., the use of various drugs to clear surplus fluid and medication to expand blood vessels. In severe cases, pacemakers are implanted. Congestive heart failure is a chronic disease requiring frequent hospitalizations; patients’ conditions usually deteriorate to the point where they need nursing care. Most innovations in the field are designed to predict attacks, and treat them at home to prevent hospitalization, but they do not treat the cause of the disease.

V Wave has developed a completely different solution to the disease, which it believes can greatly improve patients’ quality of life and extend it.

The company is based in Hod HaSharon, Israel.