CVRx® Closes $12 Million Additional Financing

MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- CVRx, Inc., a privately held medical device company, has closed on an additional $12 million under its Series F financing.  This brings the total raised in the Series F financing to $42 million.

CVRx plans to use the funding for the primary purposes of advancing its clinical trials and expanding its international commercial activities. New investors added in this round of financing included Ysios Capital, DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc. and others. In conjunction with this transaction, Josep Sanfeliu, General Partner of Ysios Capital, joined the CVRx Board of Directors.

"CVRx is recognized as a strong, innovative leader," said Sanfeliu.  "I am excited to join the Board of Directors as a European active medtech investor and look forward to working with the CVRx team to build upon their clinical and commercial success."

About Ysios and DaVita
Ysios Capital, founded in 2008, is a leading Spanish independent venture capital firm that provides private equity financing to early- and mid-stage human healthcare and life science companies. The Ysios Capital team includes experienced professionals with complementary expertise in investing and building healthcare and biotechnology companies. For more information, visit Ysioscapital.com.

DaVita is the dialysis division of DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc., a Fortune 500^® company that, through its operating divisions, provides a variety of health care services to patient populations throughout the United States and abroad. A leading provider of kidney care in the United States, DaVita delivers dialysis services to patients with chronic kidney failure and end stage renal disease. DaVita strives to improve patients' quality of life by innovating clinical care, and by offering integrated treatment plans, personalized care teams and convenient health-management services. As of June 30, 2013, DaVita operated or provided administrative services at 2,010 outpatient dialysis centers located in the United States serving approximately 159,000 patients. The company also operated 48 outpatient dialysis centers located in ten countries outside the United States. DaVita supports numerous programs dedicated to creating positive, sustainable change in communities around the world. The company's leadership development initiatives and social responsibility efforts have been recognized by Fortune, Modern Healthcare, Newsweek and WorldBlu. For more information, visit DaVita.com.

About CVRx, Inc.
CVRx, Inc. is a privately held company founded in 2001 and headquartered in Minneapolis. The company has developed Barostim neo^™, a novel medical device system designed to treat hypertension and heart failure, two major unmet medical needs. Barostim neo received CE marking for the treatment of hypertension in Europe. It is under clinical evaluation for the treatment of heart failure in Europe and the United States and under clinical evaluation for the treatment of hypertension in the United States. CVRx has treated more than 625 patients with its patented devices. For more information, visit Cvrx.com.

About Heart Failure
In heart failure, heart function is impaired, resulting in shortness of breath, exercise intolerance and fluid retention. In the United States, heart failure is estimated to affect 5.1 million adults.¹ Overall, heart failure is associated with a four-fold increased risk of death and a six to nine times increased risk of sudden cardiac death.¹ The direct and indirect costs of heart failure are estimated to be $32 billion in the United States in 2013.¹

About Hypertension
In the United States, hypertension affects 77.9 million people.¹ Worldwide, hypertension is estimated to cause one in every eight deaths.¹ It is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease, morbidity and mortality. Twenty-five percent of people with hypertension cannot adequately control their hypertension with medications and lifestyle modifications.^2,3 It is a disease that needs new treatment solutions.

About Barostim neo
Barostim neo is a second generation device that uses CVRx-patented technology that is designed to trigger the body's own natural blood flow regulation system to treat hypertension and heart failure. The system works by electrically activating the baroreceptors, the body's natural blood pressure sensors that regulate cardiovascular function. These baroreceptors are located on the carotid artery. When activated by Barostim neo, signals are sent through neural pathways to the brain, which responds by telling the:

• Arteries to relax, making it easier for blood to flow through the body and reducing cardiac exertion;
• Heart to slow down, allowing more time for the organ to fill with blood; and
• Kidneys to reduce fluid in the body, lowering both excessive blood pressure and workload on the heart.

This unique, patented technology has the potential to improve quality of life and reduce health risks associated with hypertension and heart failure, including heart and kidney disease, stroke and death. Other key potential benefits of Barostim neo include the following:

• Can be adjusted to meet each patient's individual therapy needs, making it the only personalized medical device therapy for the treatment of hypertension with a CE marking;
• Is a non-destructive reversible treatment; and
• Provides 100% compliance to treatment, by automatically and continuously activating the baroreflex.

Footnotes:

1. Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics. American Heart Association – 2013 Update. Circulation 2013;127:e6-e245.
2. Prospective Studies Collaboration. Lancet 2002;360:1903-1913.
3. Chobanian AV. JAMA 2003;289:2560-2572.

CAUTION: Barostim neo is an investigational device and is limited by United States law to investigational use.

CVRx and Barostim neo are trademarks of CVRx, Inc. registered in the United States Trademark Office.

DaVita and DaVita HealthCare Partners are trademarks or registered trademarks of DaVita HealthCare Partners Inc.

© CVRx, Inc. 2013. All rights reserved.

SOURCE CVRx, Inc.