Madison-based medical device company Medical Engineering Innovations (MEI) plans to apply newly-acquired capital toward U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulatory activities leading up to market clearance of its surgical product.
Founded in 2005 by researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the company has been developing and testing for more than a decade a new surgical tool that will combat blood loss during liver resection.
The device, called SwiftBlade, uses radio frequency to energize electrodes that apply electrical currents to tissue during surgery, causing the tissue to coagulate, which minimizes the bleeding.
According to MEI, blood loss has been repeatedly identified as a primary risk factor, and between 28% and 47% of liver resection patients require blood transfusion. When more than two units of blood are required, mortality rates increase nine times, according to the company.
A formal statement of efficacy could not be made at this time, company officials said.
According to a recent filing with the SEC, the company is raising $2.5 million, of which $2.19 million has already been secured from seven investors.
Existing investors in MEI include Illinois venture capital firm Serra Ventures, which led a $1.4 million round in the company in 2019.
