Wright Medical Defends Clinical Performance of Cartiva Implant

Wright Medical reported weaker-than-expected sales of its recently-acquired Cartiva implant in the second-quarter, prompting the company to reduce its guidance for the year. The news comes amid some investor concerns and analyst commentary regarding the clinical performance and market opportunity for Cartiva. Wright shelled out $435 million to acquire Cartiva last year. FDA approved the Cartiva Synthetic Cartilage Implant (SCI) for treating arthritis at the base of the great toe in July 2016. The implant is composed of a biocompatible, durable, low-friction organic polymer designed to function similarly to natural cartilage, and it can be implanted in about 35 minutes, Wright noted at the time of the acquisition. Other benefits the company has touted include the reduction of joint pain without sacrificing the foot's natural movement and the retention of the patient's mobility and range of motion. Also, due to a less restrictive rehabilitation protocol, Cartiva patients typically return to function and daily activities faster than patients who undergo a fusion procedure, according to the company. But investor concerns prompted Mike Matson, a medtech analyst at Needham & Co., to dig into the data from Cartiva's pivotal trial, known as the MOTION trial. "The MOTION pivotal trial showed statistically significant higher pain scores with Cartiva but similar functional scores," Matson wrote in a price target and estimat...
Source: MDDI - Category: Medical Devices Authors: Tags: Orthopedics Business Source Type: news