Radioactive Technology Focus of CardioVascular Spinoff

IRVINE —  CardioVascular Dynamics Inc. said Wednesday that it is forming a spinoff company to develop products for using radioactive materials to treat blood vessels.

The Irvine biomedical company said the offspring, Radiis Inc., will be housed close to its own corporate headquarters.

The parent will license Radiis to develop the products using radioactive materials to prevent surgically unclogged vessels from clogging up again.

In turn, CardioVascular Dynamics, which has invested about $7 million to $10 million in developing that technology, will get a minority stake in the new company and marketing privileges, the company said. The company also expects to raise $2 million from private investors, including Radiis employees, by the end of this month.

Michael Henson, CardioVascular Dynamics’ chairman and chief executive officer, said: “We find ourselves in a situation where we have a wealth of products and technology and [a spinoff] seems the best way to accelerate development of the technology.”

Radiis company expects to hire six to 10 employees in the next six months and recruit a chief executive early next year, he said.

CardioVascular Dynamics is itself a spin off from Pleasanton, Calif.-based Endosonics Corp.

Henson says CardioVascular Dynamics has about $38 million left from its $40-million initial public offering last year--money intended to support development of other company products, including a line of super-fine needles that use sound to enable a physician to locate and treat blood vessels in infants.

The company lost $3 million on annual sales last year of $8.5 million. Henson projected its sales will jump to $14 million this year and losses will be about the same as last year.