MENLO PARK, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Spinal Modulation, Inc. announced today the completion of its $27.4 million Series C financing. Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation (JJDC) joined existing major investors including DeNovo Ventures, ePlanet/DFJ, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, and MedVenture Associates in this financing. DFJ/InCube Ventures and Raffles Venture Partners are additional new investors. Proceeds from the financing will be used to support further development of the company’s next generation spinal cord stimulator system to treat patients suffering from chronic intractable pain.
“As we begin to better understand the mechanisms behind the disease, treatment options will advance and patients will have more alternatives. When you look at the technologies that currently exist for patients suffering with chronic pain, it is obvious that there is a great need for innovation,” said David Wood, President and CEO of Spinal Modulation, Inc. “We are very encouraged by our early results with Spinal Modulation’s innovative technology.”
Chronic pain represents a major cost to the US healthcare system of approximately $90 – $100 billion annually. Up to 30% of Americans are estimated to suffer from chronic pain. The direct medical costs of managing back pain alone in the United States are estimated to be greater than $25 billion per year. As patients progress through the continuum of care, physicians may treat patients by using traditional spinal cord stimulation, a technique in which tiny electrodes are placed near the spinal cord and electric currents are applied to relieve pain. Spinal Modulation is focusing its first product in the chronic pain market by developing a new spinal cord stimulator system to address the huge burden chronic pain represents to the healthcare system.
