Moximed Misha implantable shock absorber knee osteoarthritis
[Image from Moximed

Knee osteoarthritis (OA) treatment developer Moximed announced today that it raised $40 million in a Series C equity and debt financing.

Fremont, California-based Moximed will use the proceeds from the financing to pursue regulatory approvals and establish commercial infrastructure for its Misha knee system — the world’s first implantable shock absorber (ISA) for the knee.

According to a news release, Advent Life Sciences led the funding round, while it also included returning investors New Enterprise Associates (NEA), Future Fund, Vertex Healthcare, Gilde Healthcare, GBS Venture Partners and Morgenthaler Ventures. Runway Growth Capital provided debt financing.

Moximed designed its Misha system for implantation during an outpatient procedure to help people with mild to moderate osteoarthritis preserve their knee joints while living active lives.

The system has demonstrated the ability to alleviate pain, improve function and potentially delay the need for total knee replacement in some patients, the company said. Dr. Anil Ranawat, chief of the hip and knee division at the Sports Medicine Institute, Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, said in the release that a lack of options after non-surgical care is exhausted frustrated knee OA patients.

According to Dr. Shazad Malik, a general partner with Advent Life Sciences, people with knee OA have “been waiting for a solution that falls between conservative care and eventual joint replacement,” with Misha potentially filling the gap in care.

“We’ve listened carefully to patients, and their surgeons, and we’re excited to develop a solution that meets their needs,” Moximed CEO Anton Clifford said in the release. “Patients deserve treatment options that allow them to live life to their fullest abilities, whether it’s caring for a loved one, returning to a favorite sport, or simply getting through their working day.

“Results from our pivotal study show the Misha knee system not only alleviates pain and OA-induced activity limitations, but also offers complete preservation of the knee, an outpatient procedure, and early weight bearing. These are all strong preferences expressed by our patient population.”

Results from the pivotal study mentioned by Clifford will be presented next month (Sept. 22, 2020), at the Orthopedic Summit (OSET) in Boston, Moximed said.