Ornim Medical, a biomedical device technology company pioneering non-invasive patient monitoring solutions for cerebral and tissue blood flow, has completed a funding round of $10m led by private equity fund investor OrbiMed Israel, with participation by General Electric unit GE Healthcare and venture capital fund Aate Medical Investments.
The funding is the second phase of the previous equity round carried out by the company in 2012, where OrbiMed, GE, and Agate invested a total of $10m. According to Ornim, the current fundraising phase was carried out after fulfilling all set milestones, including placement of systems in leading centres, mainly in the United States.
GE healthymagination Fund, part of GE’s $6bn healthymagination initiative, is also listed as one of Ornim’s investors. The Fund draws on capabilities from across GE Healthcare, GE Capital and GE Global Research. The investment for Ornim will allow the company to continue accelerating product development and fund international marketing costs.
There is increasing recognition around the world of the need to specifically protect the brain during the execution of various medical procedures. Ornim’s technology allows real-time monitoring of brain tissue oxygen saturation levels as well as changes in blood supply to the brain. This technology will allow customised patient treatment, which could prevent complications and enable earlier medical intervention.
The company claims that the potential market for its devices is very large since existing solutions are not sufficient, as demonstrated by the clinical results of patients in intensive care who often experience brain damage, decline in cognitive function, and other neurological complications because of a lack of knowledge of oxygen and blood flow levels in specific areas such as the brain.