Medical device giant Medtronic entered into a deal with privately held Ablation Frontiers of Carlsbad to acquire the company for more than $225 million, Medtronic said Jan. 12.
The transaction, subject to regulatory approvals, would give Minneapolis-based Medtronic another asset in its portfolio of companies focused on safer, simpler and more effective ways for treating atrial fibrillation, an irregular quivering or rapid heart rhythm affecting about 3 million Americans and 7 million people worldwide. Medtronic said it plans to combine Ablation with another recent acquisition, CryoCath Technologies, which developed a method for treating heart arrhythmias by freezing aberrant heart cells.
Ablation has been developing a device for treating the condition using radio frequency. The device gained marketing approvals in the European Union in 2006, and the company said it would seek U.S. approvals following a clinical trial this year.
The transaction is expected to close by April.
, Heather Chambers
