Medical device startup Cryosa closes $8.25M Series A-2 funding to further develop breakthrough therapies for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)

According to sleep foundation, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) impacts approximately 22 million Americans, disrupting sleep and potentially leading to other serious medical conditions if undiagnosed and untreated. At present, it is very difficult to estimate the prevalence of childhood OSA because of widely varying monitoring techniques, with prevalence as high as 10 to 20% in habitually snoring children. The current surgical treatments for obstructive sleep apnea are invasive and do not focus on curing the root cause of the disorder

Cryosa is a Minnesota-based medical device startup focused on developing breakthrough, minimally invasive and permanent therapies for OSA. Yesterday, Cryosa announced it has closed $8.25 million in Series A-2 funding to engage in first-in-human clinical trials. The round was led by life sciences firm, Santé Ventures, and HOYA Corporation (“HOYA”), with additional institutional and individual investors. The company has completed extensive pre-clinical testing, evaluating safety and efficacy.

Founded in 2018 by Donald Gonzales, who also serves as the company’s chief medical officer (CMO), CryOSA is a medical device startup developing novel treatments for obstructive sleep apnea. Prior to Cryosa, Gonzales was CMO for Entellus Medical, which was acquired by Stryker in 2018, and founded several other companies in the ear, nose and throat space including Spirox Medical and ENTrigue Surgical.

Cryosa’s president and CEO is Mark Christopherson, who brings more than 25 years of experience in the medical device industry to the company. He was a co-founding executive of Inspire Medical and led NxThera’s research and development during commercialization and pivotal trials, prior to the company’s acquisition by Boston Scientific in 2018.

“Current surgical treatments for obstructive sleep apnea are invasive and do not focus on curing the root cause of the disorder,” said Cryosa founder Dr. Donald Gonzales. “Cryosa was founded to develop minimally invasive, permanent therapies for OSA.”

“There is a large, unmet medical need for a minimally invasive obstructive sleep apnea therapy,” said Dr. James Eadie, Partner at Santé Ventures and Cryosa board member. “Cryosa’s approach is elegant and backed by a strong team of medical device entrepreneurs and engineers.”

“The market for OSA therapies is substantial and continues to grow,” said Rubal Bedi, Global Head and Vice President of Corporate Venture Capital at HOYA. “Cryosa is well-positioned to help the needs of patients living with this sleep disorder.”

Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when the upper airway soft tissue collapses. Individuals with this sleep disorder may stop breathing for more than 10 seconds, experience lower oxygen saturation and be roused from sleep up to hundreds of times per night.

“Recent research shows a connection between adipose/fat tissue of the upper airway and the severity of OSA,” Christopherson said. “By focusing on methods and treatments to selectively reduce adipose tissue, we believe we can help reduce instances of OSA and help people sleep better.”