Auctus Global Capital Portfolio Company Gains Momentum After Completing 100-Patient Clinical Study

IRVINE, Calif., June 12, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Auctus Global Capital, a medical device investment firm based in Irvine, California, today announced that its portfolio company, Laser Associated Sciences' ("LAS") blood flow monitoring system, FlowMet-R, achieved its first critical milestone by successfully completing a 100-patient clinical study. The device, which was developed to detect and measure the severity of one of the leading causes of lower limb amputation, peripheral artery disease ("PAD"), is solving an unmet need for physicians who have found the disease difficult to track and measure. The non-invasive portable device utilizes a camera the size of a postage stamp, and a small laser diode, to measure blood flow in the arteries, veins, and capillaries, by simply clipping it onto a patient's toe.

Dr. Mahmood Razavi, M.D., vascular and interventional radiologist at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange, has successfully used the FlowMet-R device to measure blood flow in real-time during his procedures. "Until now, there has been no good way for us (physicians) to assess our patients physiologically. Angiograms tell us anatomically what has been done to a patient, but physiologically it is hard to determine if we have restored enough blood flow. After using this device to monitor blood flow intra-procedurally in real-time, it occurred to me that this technology addresses a long-standing need," says Dr. Razavi.

Traditional monitoring during PAD surgery includes angiography, which uses x-rays to generate images of blocked blood vessels. By itself however, angiography does not provide surgeons with direct information about how much blood flow has been restored to the limb, which is an important indicator of surgical success. "This device is very sensitive and can pick up minor changes, which is what we want. Frequently, we would do too much to a patient because there was no good way to assess whether the treatment we rendered was sufficient. This device minimizes additional tests and allows us to focus on patients who need extra attention," adds Dr. Razavi.

Data from the 100-patient clinical study in which FlowMet-R measurements were validated against standard metrics of vascular health were very promising.  Results are projected to be published next quarter.

LAS is scheduled to begin a multi-center clinical study to investigate the degree of blood flow restoration that clinicians should target during surgery, as well as the accuracy with which FlowMet-R measurements can detect and gauge the severity of PAD and critical limb ischemia.

Shiv Grewal, a Managing Member at Auctus, confirmed, "These are the kind of technology companies Auctus likes.  The FlowMet-R device solves a critical medical problem with technology that is non-invasive and requires minimal additional physician training. The LAS team has executed with efficiency and is a pleasure to work with.  We are very satisfied with our investment."

Added Sean White, the CEO of LAS, "The Auctus relationship is a perfect fit for LAS.  Apart from the capital, the strategic insight that Auctus has provided as well as their collective experience with a significant number of transactions in the life science space, has been invaluable." 

Contact:
April Barry
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949-329-8922

SOURCE Auctus Global Capital Group