The emerging device companies that have been hardest hit by the economic woes of the past couple of years have been those looking for later-stage financing. These companies face venture investors who are either unwilling or unable to invest in late-stage deals, while also confronting an IPO market that largely remains closed to them, particularly in the US. In Europe, however, that may be changing, most notably in France, where Stentys SAS, which is developing stents to treat acute myocardial infarctions, recently became the second device company to successfully go public this year.

Device companies large and small have failed repeatedly in efforts to address bifurcations, which remain one of the largest unmet opportunities in cardiology. Cappella thinks it can solve the problem with a device that's a new version of an old idea, reversing current protocol to treat the side branch first.

Many device companies, large and small, have tried unsuccessfully to come up with a stent to treat bifurcated lesions, primarily by focusing on treating the main vessel. Tryton is taking a different approach: using a bare-metal device designed to treat the side branch. The company believes this contrarian strategy pairs perfectly with current drug-eluting stents, making them an ideal acquisition target for a large CV company.