TendoNova Welcomes New Board Members

News

TendoNova Corporation, an emerging leader in micro-invasive sports medicine procedures, is excited to announce completion of a new Preferred capital raise intended to help finance the commercialization of its flagship product, the Ocelot® Nano.  In conjunction with the financing, we welcome Ian Campbell (former CEO of OnScale) and Jeffrey (Jeff) Clark (former CEO of Hyperbranch Medical Technologies) to TendoNova’s Board of Directors.

The financing was led by Venture South, one of the largest angel investor groups in the Southeast and CampbellKlein as co-investor.   The financing allowed the Company to convert $1.4 million in short-term debt to equity as well as providing new cash to bolster operations.

“This financing came at a critical time for the Company and is already helping to improve marketing and sales,” said TendoNova CEO Mark A. Samuels. “In fact, sales for March are double the previous sales record!”

As part of the financing, Chairman Louis F Malice Jr. and co-founders Shawna Khouri, Luka Grujic and Brett Rogers retired from the Board after helping lead the Company from virtual startup through product development, regulatory clearance and launch of commercialization.   The Company is grateful for their service.

Our new Directors have extensive experience in commercialization and exit with Ian Campbell’s sale of OnScale to ANSYS and Jeff Clark’s sale of Hyperbranch to Stryker, both in 2018.

Dr. Ken Mautner, Emory sports medicine physician (and head team physician for the Atlanta Hawks), commented “The potential to combine biologics and Ocelot to target diseased tendons with minimally invasive ultrasound-guided procedures has enormous potential. Helping develop the Ocelot, and using the Ocelot in my practice, is part of our longer-term plan to improve our ability to help our patients.”

The Ocelot System performs mechanical fragmentation or debridement of a targeted area. Fragmentation and debridement are commonly used to encourage the growth of healthy tendons to supplant painful pathologic tendon tissue. Chronic tendon pain disorders, or tendinopathies, include tennis elbow, plantar fasciitis, and jumper’s knee. Tendinopathy is prevalent in athletes and anyone else who engages in repetitive tasks. If left untreated, tendinopathy can lead to months or years of pain and even career-ending injuries.

The Ocelot device is now routinely used in prominent facilities and clinics around the county including Emory Sports Medicine in Atlanta, the Mayo Clinic Rochester and a variety of other locations

 

About TendoNova

Founded in 2017, TendoNova is a medical device company that is an emerging leader in micro-invasive sports medicine procedures. The company’s initial product is the Ocelot® TSD 1000, a patented, FDA-cleared medical device for the fragmentation or debridement of soft tissue.

TendoNova is also working on a digital health solution to provide device operating feedback during a procedure to reduce training times and improve outcomes. Dedicated to helping people live healthier lives with less pain and fewer injuries, the Company plans a series of instrumented micro-invasive tools designed to help physicians better heal patients suffering from advanced tendons and other pathologies.

About VentureSouth

VentureSouth is an early-stage venture firm that provides capital and expertise to Southeastern startup through its angel investment network and funds.   Since its inception, VentureSouth has grown to over 550 members across the Southeast, invested over $80 million in over 100 companies, generated investment returns for investors and helped its portfolio companies raise $1 billion in follow-on capital and create more than 1,500 jobs.  VentureSouth is located in Greenville, SC.

About Campbell Kline

CampbellKlein is a management consulting and family investment fund. Their portfolio includes privately held Silicon Valley firms like NextInput.  CampbellKline is located in San Jose, CA.

Website:  www.tendonova.com
Contact:  Mark A Samuels, CEO; mark.samuels@tendonova.com;  877-203-0161

TendoNova wins FDA Clearance for Its New Microinvasive Ocelot Surgical Tool

News

TendoNova, an emerging leader in microinvasive sports medicine procedures, is pleased to announce the FDA 510(k) clearance of its new Ocelot surgical tool, which uses an innovative technology for fragmentation or debridement of soft tissue.

The FDA found the Ocelot TDS 1000 substantially equivalent to the Tenex TX1 (recently acquired by Trice Medical) which is routinely used for percutaneous tenotomy in orthopedics, sports medicine, pain management, and podiatry. The Ocelot System’s form factor and price point make it an exciting alternative to existing tools.

Using technology licensed from Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University School of Medicine, the Ocelot facilitates procedures that require fragmentation and debridement of soft tissue under external image guidance in a simple hand-held format. TendoNova was able to achieve this success through grants and investor backing of groups such as the Georgia Research Alliance and the NFL Players’ Association.

“According to studies cited by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 30 million people in the U.S. suffer from chronic tendon pain, and half of those have little or no relief from physical therapy or medication,” said TendoNova CEO, Mark A Samuels. “The Ocelot is the company’s first product and was conceived in response to a request by Atlanta Hawks head team physician Dr. Ken Mautner for an improved tool.”

Dr. Mautner, who practices at Emory, commented that, “After 15 years of treating elite and recreational athletes for tendinopathy, I have been frustrated by the tools we have had to help heal these injuries. The TendoNova device could be a game changer in getting our athletes back to the healthiest level possible.”

The Ocelot System performs mechanical fragmentation or debridement of a targeted area. The use of fragmentation and debridement is part of a common treatment for encouraging the growth of healthy tendon to supplant painful pathologic tendon tissue. Chronic tendon pain disorders, or tendinopathies, include tennis elbow, plantar fasciitis, and jumper’s knee. Tendinopathy is prevalent in athletes and anyone else who engages in repetitive tasks. If left untreated, can lead to months or years of pain and even career-ending injuries.

TendoNova plans to manufacture the Ocelot in Georgia and is presently working to validate the Ocelot disposable component production. The Ocelot is expected to be available to physicians in the second half of 2022.

 

About TendoNova

Founded in 2017, TendoNova is a medical device company that is an emerging leader in microinvasive sports medicine procedures. The company’s initial product is the Ocelot™ TSD 1000, a patented, FDA cleared medical device for fragmentation or debridement of soft tissue. TendoNova is also working on a digital health solution projected to provide device operating feedback during a procedure to reduce training times and improve outcomes. Dedicated to helping people live healthier lives with less pain and fewer injuries, the company plans a series of instrumented microinvasive tools designed to help physicians better heal patients suffering from advanced tendon and other pathologies.