Companion Spine acquires Backbone SAS

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Companion Spine has announced the acquisition of Backbone SAS, a company based in Bordeaux, France, that designs, develops, manufactures and markets functional motion restoration implantable devices to treat spinal disorders.

The acquisition expands Companion Spine’s portfolio of medical implant solutions with the inclusion of Backbone’s main medical device, the LISA (Lumbar Implant for Stiffness Augmentation) implant. The move allows Companion Spine to complete its line of treatment solutions for spine diseases, most notably lumbar stenosis and degenerative disc disease, matching implants to the degree of severity of the disease.

Erick Cloix, CEO and co-founder of Companion Spine, said: “The acquisition of Backbone and its leading technology, the LISA implant, is a further development and solidification of Companion Spine’s industrial effort. We are very pleased to be able to expand the continuum of solutions aligning the proper spine implant for the therapeutic goals of the patient.

“Our DIAM implant is oriented towards a lesser spine pain pathology, while the LISA implant provides a more solid support controlling both flexion and extension of the back. The complementary nature of these two products allows Companion Spine to offer a full range of therapeutic solutions, in response to the whole range of pathologies involving the spine, from lumbar stenosis to degenerative disc disease, and for each degree of severity.”

The LISA implant, which has been CE marked since 2018, aims to reduce chronic pain related to degenerative diseases of the lumbar spine, preserving form, function and motion, while balancing and restoring the patient’s freedom of movement.

The acquisition of Backbone by Companion Spine also strengthens the company’s scientific link with the School of Spine Surgery of the University of Bordeaux (Bordeaux, France), founded by professor Jacques Sénégas.

Anthony Viscogliosi, principal at Viscogliosi Brothers and co-founder and executive chairman of Companion Spine, added: “This acquisition is perfectly in line with Companion Spine’s strategic ambition to develop a new generation of medical tools and implants to address the needs of back pain and spine diseases, which solve real public health issues worldwide.

“We are working to improve, innovate, and commercialise alternatives to invasive surgeries that are currently the standard treatment for spinal diseases. Backbone’s medical and technological expertise is a valuable asset that will allow us to treat more patients with an appropriate, less burdensome, implant that matches the implant to the patient’s needs.”

Nazanine Sahami, founder, president and CEO of Backbone, commented: “This new collaboration with Companion Spine is a great opportunity for Backbone. We are expanding French technological and medical know-how and expertise, as well as Backbone’s therapeutic influence, through the LISA implant.

“This new step is in line with our focus to develop Backbone’s positioning on an international scale in order to bring appropriately matched therapeutic benefits to patients suffering for a long time from back pain. We are enthusiastic to join forces with the most experienced and competent team in this space to make early-stage spine pain relief with motion preservation the standard of care for spinal pathologies.”

Professor Vincent Pointillart, a spine surgeon at the Bordeaux University Hospital, concluded: “Patients desire maintaining motion in their spine while relieving back pain. The LISA device is a first-class medical technology that adapts to the patient’s situation at any given moment. It is a less invasive, more effective, and reversible medical device, in contrast to the gold standard treatment for spinal pathologies, spinal fusion, which involves heavy, invasive, sometimes painful, and irreversible surgery. While the DIAM implant alleviates pain by off-loading the disc in between the bones of the spine, the LISA implant alleviates the pain associated in a more unstable spine pathology.

“The development of cutting-edge medical devices that will improve the treatment of back pain and spine diseases is one of the top priorities of the University of Bordeaux’s School of Surgery. The acquisition of Backbone by Companion Spine, intrinsically links innovations stemming from the University of Bordeaux’s academic research and work, continuing this historic focus.”


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