SAN DIEGO, Jan. 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CryoCor, Inc. , a medical device company focused on the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias, announced today that it filed two patent infringement lawsuits against CryoCath Technologies Inc., one in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware and one in Canada.
The lawsuits allege that CryoCath’s products infringe several patents related to CryoCor’s Cardiac Cryoablation System. CryoCor is an exclusive licensee of the patents, and is seeking monetary damages and injunctions in the United States and Canada to prohibit further infringement.
Ed Brennan, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of CryoCor, said, “We believe that our exclusive license to these patents gives us broad coverage over key technologies that are critical in the field of cryoablation for cardiovascular applications. We have filed this lawsuit against CryoCath to enforce our intellectual property rights related to this critical segment of healthcare.”
CryoCor has previously announced that it is pursuing patent interference proceedings initiated in 2004 with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. CryoCor’s believes that it, through the licensor, was the first to invent certain pre-cooling technologies and is seeking that an interference be declared between CryoCath patents and CryoCor intellectual property to determine right of invention and ownership. CryoCor reported that it expects a patent interference proceeding to be declared by the U.S.P.T.O. in the first half of 2008.
About CryoCor
CryoCor is a medical technology company that has developed and manufactures a disposable catheter system based on its proprietary cryoablation technology for the minimally invasive treatment of cardiac arrhythmias. The Company’s product, the CryoCor Cardiac Cryoablation System, or the Cryoablation System, is designed to treat cardiac arrhythmias through the use of cryoenergy, or extreme cold, to destroy targeted cardiac tissue. The Cryoablation System has been approved in Europe for the treatment of atrial fibrillation, and atrial flutter, the two most common and difficult to treat arrhythmias, since 2002. In the United States, CryoCor is conducting a pivotal trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the Cryoablation System for the treatment of atrial fibrillation and the Cryoablation System has been approved for the treatment of right atrial flutter. For more information please visit the Company’s website at http://www.cryocor.com
Forward Looking Statements
The statements in this press release that are not descriptions of historical facts are forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. These include statements related to the merits of CryoCor’s positions in its litigation and interference proceedings with CryoCath and the possible outcome of that litigation and those interference proceedings, all of which are prospective. Such statements are only predictions and reflect CryoCor’s expectations and assumptions as of the date of this press release based on currently available operating, financial, and competitive information. The actual events or results may differ materially from those projected in such forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including risks involved with CryoCor’s technology; risks associated with the Company’s dependence on patents and proprietary rights; risks associated with the Company’s protection and enforcement of its patents and proprietary rights; risks associated with the development or availability of competitive products or technologies and the other risks and uncertainties identified in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. The Company expressly disclaims any intent or obligation to update any of these forward- looking statements.
nlaudico@theruthgroup.comgtibbitts@cryocor.com zkubow@theruthgroup.comjrando@theruthgroup.com
CONTACT: Gregory J. Tibbitts, Chief Financial Officer of CryoCor, Inc.,
+1-858-909-2200, gtibbitts@cryocor.com; at The Ruth Group, investors, Nick
Laudico, +1-646-536-7030, nlaudico@theruthgroup.com, Zack Kubow,
+1-646-536- 7020, zkubow@theruthgroup.com, or media, Jason Rando,
+1-646-536-7025, jrando@theruthgroup.com
Web site: http://www.cryocor.com/
