Medtronic continues assembly of industry's "broadest" pain therapy portfolio. Medtronic formally launched ViaVerte at ASPN 2026, with its $650m acquisition of SPR Therapeutics completing at the meeting's outset on 16 July. Bolstered by a recent $650m deal and a new device launch, Medtronic's pain therapy product lineup is going from strength to strength. Medtronic's completed acquisition of SPR Therapeutics this July, along with its recent formal rollout of the ViaVerte basal nerve ablation system, avails the medtech giant of the "broadest pain therapy portfolio in the industry", a Medtronic executive has asserted. ViaVerte is a basivertebral nerve ablation (BVNA) system that delivers radiofrequency (RF) ablation to destroy the small nerve within the vertebral body that is responsible for transmitting pain signals associated with chronic lower-back pain. Originally developed by Merit Medical, Medtronic signed a distribution deal for the system in March 2026. Following the agreement, Medtronic formally launched ViaVerte, which secured US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance in March 2026, at the 2026 American Society of Pain and Neuroscience (ASPN) meeting, which took place 16-19 July in Miami. Meanwhile, Medtronic completed its $650m acquisition of SPR Therapeutics on 16 July. The Ohio-based company's lead product is SPRINT, a peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) system for addressing chronic pain and expands Medtronic's existing chronic pain lineup. According to GlobalData analysis, the global neuromodulation device market is projected to reach a valuation of over $13bn in 2035, up from around $6.8bn in 2025. Ashwini Sharan, CMO at Medtronic Neuromodulation, tells Medical Device Network the addition of SPR's core product and ViaVerte strengthens what the company believes is the "broadest pain therapy portfolio in the industry" while also reinforcing Medtronic's ability to serve patients of pain care "with evidence-based, non-opioid treatment options". Sharan continues: "The launch of ViaVerte, together with its acquisition of SPR Therapeutics, reflects its commitment to expanding patient access to innovative, minimally invasive pain therapies. "ViaVerte complements our existing pain interventions portfolio by giving physicians an additional option for appropriately selected patients with vertebrogenic chronic low back pain, while SPRINT expands our ability to address both chronic and acute pain through short-term peripheral nerve stimulation." Regarding ViaVerte's rollout in the US, Sharan says the company is taking a "thoughtful, phased approach to commercialisation" in order to satisfy dictates around the BVNA system, including clinical support and patient access. "Our focus is on ensuring clinicians have the training and resources needed to successfully integrate the therapy into practice while expanding access responsibly. As adoption continues to grow, we'll build on our commercial infrastructure and physician-support network to broaden availability," Sharan explains. "Whether it's for ViaVerte for vertebrogenic pain or SPRINT for chronic and acute pain, we're focused on expanding access to innovative, non-opioid therapies that support individualised treatment decisions and meaningful improvements in patients' quality of life," he concludes. Give your business an edge with its leading industry insights.

Acquisition adds category-defining SPRINT® PNS technology to Medtronic's pain therapy portfolio—the broadest in the industry.¹ GALWAY, Ireland, July 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Medtronic plc...

New Zealand's Wellumio closes 9.75 million dollar round to bring portable stroke imaging to the bedside. Editorial Team July 24, 2026 at 4:14 AM UTC Wellumio, a New Zealand medical technology company developing a portable brain imaging device for point-of-care stroke detection, has announced the final close of an oversubscribed 9.75 million dollar pre-Series A funding round, bringing in new international backing to accelerate its path toward clinical and commercial rollout. The round was led by Nuance Connected Capital, with continued participation from Icehouse Ventures, NZ Growth Capital Partners' Aspire Seed Fund, Pacific Channel, Booster and Cure Kids Ventures. Angel investor groups Flying Kiwi and Enterprise Angels also took part, alongside international investors through the New Zealand Government's Active Investor Plus programme and retail investors via Snowball Effect. The final close added two new international backers, Australian medtech investor Bioshore Ventures and US-based neurotechnology investor Jumpspace Ventures, broadening the company's investor base heading into its next stage of growth. Solving the golden hour problem in stroke care. Wellumio was founded in 2019 by Dr Shieak Tzeng, who serves as chief executive, and Dr Sergei Obruchkov, the company's chief technology officer. The company's core product, called Axana, is a portable neuroimaging device designed to rapidly detect acute stroke and unlock appropriate treatment within what clinicians refer to as the golden hour, the narrow early window after symptom onset when treatment decisions have the greatest impact on a patient's eventual recovery. Conventional MRI systems, while highly effective diagnostically, are large, infrastructure heavy machines that require shielded rooms, cryogenic cooling systems and specialized radiology facilities to operate. That infrastructure burden means fewer than five percent of stroke patients globally currently receive treatment within the optimal golden hour window, according to the company. Axana is designed to remove much of that infrastructure dependency, enabling brain imaging directly at a patient's bedside in emergency departments and other acute care settings, rather than requiring transport to a dedicated imaging suite. Clinical validation and early commercial interest. Wellumio has already completed a feasibility study at Royal Melbourne Hospital and established partnerships with organizations including Medtronic and the Australian Stroke Alliance. The company says more than 30 stroke centers across the United States have expressed strong interest in the technology, an early signal of demand within a market it estimates to be worth more than 8.9 billion US dollars globally across in-hospital and pre-hospital stroke diagnostic imaging. Dr Tzeng has said the level of investor support Wellumio has received validates both the underlying clinical need the company is addressing and the technical progress the team has made in developing Axana to date. The company's business model combines direct capital equipment sales with ongoing subscription revenue, an approach designed to support broad hospital adoption while also building a recurring revenue base over time. A funding journey built in stages. Wellumio's pre-Series A round was structured in stages, with an initial close of 7.28 million dollars announced earlier this year before the round grew to its final oversubscribed total of 9.75 million dollars. That staged structure allowed the company to bring in additional strategic investors, including its two newest international backers, as demand for participation in the round grew beyond its original target. The company's funding sources have spanned a notably broad mix for a New Zealand medtech company, including traditional venture capital, angel investor networks, equity crowdfunding through Snowball Effect, and support through the New Zealand Government's Active Investor Plus programme, which is designed to attract international capital into the country's startup ecosystem. What the New capital will support. Wellumio plans to use the funding to expand its team and technical capabilities while advancing Axana through its next phase of clinical and regulatory milestones. The capital will also support additional clinical evaluation across new sites, building on the company's existing feasibility work and partnerships as it works toward broader commercial deployment across emergency care settings. Part of a broader push in portable medical imaging. Wellumio's progress reflects a broader trend within medical technology toward miniaturizing and decentralizing diagnostic tools that have traditionally required large, fixed hospital infrastructure. As portable imaging technology continues to mature, companies like Wellumio are betting that bringing diagnostic capability directly to the patient, rather than moving the patient to the diagnostic equipment, will meaningfully improve outcomes in time sensitive conditions like stroke, where every additional minute without treatment can measurably affect a patient's long-term recovery. With strong early clinical partnerships, growing interest from US stroke centers, and now a broadened international investor base following this latest close, Wellumio's next milestone will be converting that early validation into wider clinical adoption across the emergency care settings where Axana is designed to make the greatest difference.