Quarterly Business Review - Q4 FY2018
Brisbane, July 24, 2018 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Oventus Medical Ltd (
ASX:OVN) (Oventus, the Company) announces its Appendix 4C Report for the three-month period ending 30 June 2018 (Q4 FY2018) and is pleased to provide a review of progress made during the quarter.
Highlights
- Cost reduction program continues with transitional activities well underway to transform Oventus from being a predominantly R&D focussed company to a sales oriented company; spend reduction expected to kick in during calendar Q4 2018
- Strong clinical trial results further validate 'Oventus Airway Technology' with the Oventus' personalised treatment platform tested on an additional 45 patients (total 95 patients trialled to date across 4 studies) suffering from Obstructive Sleep Apnoea; further clinical trial results to be released in the current quarter
- New clinical data shows that over three quarters of patients may be able to be successfully treated without the need for CPAP
- Oventus' 'Sleep Treatment Platform' continues to evolve with the launch of more effective and user friendly variations and extensions of the product range over the next six months
- Focus on building Oventus USA team continues with several key appointments during the quarter. USA team undertaking marketing and educational activities targeted at driving adoption of 'Oventus Airway Technology' with sleep clinicians
- Oventus remains in a strong cash position with $9.90m as at 30 June 2018
Quarterly sales
Receipts from customers totalled $79,000 in the June quarter (Q4 FY2018), compared to $101,881 in the March 2018 quarter (Q3 FY2018).
During the reporting period, work continued to build Oventus' two main sales channels; with dentists through 'the dental channel' (predominantly through our agreement with Modern Dental) and with sleep physicians through 'the sleep channel'. To help drive referrals through both channels, Oventus is focussed on stakeholder education and generating clinical data.
Sales volumes are yet to accelerate since launching with Modern Dental in early CY18 due to long lead times on treatment uptake and the additional education typically required when launching a new treatment modality. To this end Modern has also been investing heavily in education for the dental channel.
In the sleep channel, Oventus is focussed on the generation of clinical data and education of stakeholders to drive referrals for Oventus Airway Technology. The investment in the sleep channel is being spear-headed by a newly formed, but very experienced and well credentialed US sales team.
Early feedback from the sleep community has been exceptional and the Company remains very positive that sales will build in the second half of CY18.
Founder and Clinical Director, Dr Chris Hart commented, "The Oventus treatment platform and the clinical trial data to support its adoption has undergone a rapid evolution over the last two years.
Historically we have been viewed by dentists, the sleep profession and the market as another sleep apnoea mouthguard company selling into a very competitive oral appliance market. However, with the product development undertaken and supporting clinical trial data being generated, in combination with access to existing reimbursement codes and a clear regulatory pathway, Oventus is now emerging as an airway management company.
With strong interest in our 'Sleep Treatment Platform' and continued adoption across dental and sleep channels, we should start to see increasing revenues in future quarters."
Operational staff appointments
Oventus continued to build out its operational, sales and marketing capability in North America to support the implementation of the Modern Dental distribution arrangement and the introduction of products into the Sleep channel.
Peggy Powers, Clinical Educator, North America joined the team during the quarter. Peggy will support expansion through developing and running comprehensive training programs. She joins Robin Randolph, Vice President, Marketing and Operations and Greg Eaton, Vice President Sales, who were both appointed earlier in the year. Importantly the team has long standing relationships through prior roles in industry.
Dental channel update
Product roll out with Modern Dental
Australia: Following the launch by Southern Cross Dental in late 2017, there has been increased focus on training dentists. This includes three target groups:
1. Dentists that don't currently incorporate Dental Sleep Medicine into their practice - raising awareness on how screening for sleep disorders can expand their practice offering and profitability.
2. Dentists already delivering mandibular advancement devices (MADs) - explaining how 'Oventus Airway Technology' can be tailored to patients to improve treatment outcomes.
3. Advanced Sleep Dentists that have the ability to incorporate combination therapy into clinical practice
Dentist training and education partnerships
- Oventus is bringing Dr Leopoldo Correa to Australia in August to provide training on Dental Sleep Medicine and OSA. Dr Correa is an Associate Professor and Director of the Dental Sleep Medicine Fellowship Program at Tufts University School of Dental Sleep Medicine, Boston. This training is set to coincide with the launch of Oventus's Optima product range and the first of its PEEP valve products, named Oventus ExVent
- Oventus has been developing a Sleep Program in partnership with Australian Medical Home Sleep Testing (AMHST) to assist dentists with the screening, diagnosis and treatment of patients suffering OSA. The program will launch in August and include screening for increased nasal resistance, which is a key clinical indication for prescribing 'Oventus Airway Technology' as part of a patient's oral appliance therapy
- Oventus recently secured prominent dental-sleep educational course relationships with National Sleep Alliance and DreamSleep, both of which will offer comprehensive training and incentives to Modern dentists.
USA: Oventus continues to implement its distributor strategy, with a dental channel training program being rolled out in conjunction with Modern Dental.
Smile Source Exchange conference
In early May, Dr Chris Hart presented by invitation at a Smile Source Exchange conference in Anaheim, California. Smile Source supports a network of 500 dental clinics across the US and offers a range of member-based training initiatives. This work was conducted in combination with efforts to on-board larger groups of sleep physicians and sleep labs.
Sleep channel update
Australia:
Following the release of clinical evidence, sleep specialists have indicated a willingness to adopt and recommend 'Oventus Airway Technology' as a treatment for obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) when continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment fails. The development of the new PEEP technology "ExVent" and "ONEPAP" and the clinical trial data being generated at Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA) by Prof Danny Eckert and his team, is showing that this extension of 'Oventus Airway Technology' may be able to treat over half of patients that have previously failed both CPAP therapy and oral appliance therapy, increasing the reach of 'Oventus Airway Technology' to successfully treating more than three quarters of patients with-out the need for CPAP.
USA: In recent months, Robin Randolph and Greg Eaton from Oventus USA have met or forged relationships with a range of prominent US Sleep networks.
The recent American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine (AADSM) and SLEEP 2018 exhibitions in Baltimore in June provided excellent opportunities to network with key executives whilst raising awareness with the wider dental and sleep community.
Dr Chris Hart will be undertaking activities in the USA later in the current quarter, presenting to sleep physicians the benefits of Oventus' personalised 'Sleep Treatment Platform' and onboarding them with the technology.
Product development
As a result of the launch of a number of new appliances over the coming six months that all incorporate 'Oventus Airway Technology', Oventus will be able to treat an increasing number patients suffering from obstructive sleep apnoea with minimal intervention, offering a viable CPAP alternative. The Oventus 'Sleep Treatment Platform' offering will enable a personalised patient-centric approach to sleep medicine.
An overview of appliances in the Oventus 'Sleep Treatment Platform' and their relative efficacy based on clinical trial results is shown below (see link below).
Product development has been guided by clinical trial results and market feedback on the existing range of devices.
The titanium O2VentTM appliance range currently on the market has continued to evolve to make the devices lower profile and more ergonomic as well as being compatible with the newly developed Oventus ExVent and ONEPAP devices.
The O2VentTM Optima bespoke nylon devices are ultralight weight and much lower cost to produce than the titanium O2Vent(TM) appliances. These products remain on schedule for launch in the 4th quarter of calendar 2018 and will be backed up by six clinical trial data sets being presented at the European Respiratory Society Congress in Paris this September and the Australasian Sleep Association's Sleep Down under in Brisbane in October.
Alongside the O2VentTM nylon appliance range, Oventus will soon launch the ExVent positive end expiratory pressure (PEEP) valve. The ExVent integrates into the 'duckbill' in the airway of the O2VentTM oral appliances, further enhancing efficacy for a number of patients. This device accessory controls exhalation for patients utilising the Oventus' O2VentTM airway, generating positive air pressure on exhalation, creating a micro CPAP-type effect.
The O2VentTM ONEPAP appliance (incorporating a titratable PEEP valve and nasal pillows) is on track for launch in early 2019. This appliance is designed for patients with more severe sleep apnoea and is undergoing trials as part of the NeuRA study. ONEPAP is possibly the most exciting extension of Oventus Airway Technology and in fact has the potential to elevate the efficacy of oral appliance therapy to that of CPAP for many patients.
Clinical trial results
Very positive clinical data covering an additional 45 patients in clinical trials was released during the quarter from two studies; OVEN-005 'Sydney NeuRA' trial and the OVEN-003 'Brisbane' trial.
Click here view the 'Sydney' clinical trial result announcements. (see link below)
Brisbane study
Final results were announced for a randomised, crossover clinical trial in Brisbane examining the treatment outcomes of oral appliance therapy with and without 'Oventus Airway Technology' in a group of 32 patients suffering from obstructive sleep apnoea.
Click here to view the 'Brisbane' clinical trial result announcement. (see link below)
Summary of trial result findings
To date, data has been collected and analysed across 95 patients suffering from OSA over four clinical studies, all consistently showing strong clinical efficacy of the O2VentTM oral appliance, validating 'Oventus Airway Technology' for use in both oral appliances and as a CPAP interface. See the ASX announcements section of our website for reported data: http://oventus.com.au/investors/asx-announcements/
Further results are expected in calendar Q4 2018 from the OVEN-004 'Perth' study covering 23 patients and the OVEN-005 Sydney NeuRA Study with a further 16 patients.
Cost reduction
Oventus is well progressed into a program of reducing R&D spend and diverting resources into sales channels while containing costs as part of a transition, moving from being a predominantly R&D focussed company to a sales oriented company.
The Company aims to further reduce operating overhead by reducing activities in its Melbourne office and by fully outsourcing manufacturing of its titanium O2VentTM appliance in a strategic move to become a virtual device manufacturer. This move will enable Oventus to focus on its core value proposition of driving innovation in airway management and the incorporation of its technology into existing workflows and channels.
Patent application approvals
Patent approval was received from the US Patent and Trade Mark Office, number US-10,010,444, and European Patent Office, number EP-2,709,572 in June. The approvals provide Oventus with protection for its 'Airway Technology' incorporated into its O2VentTM oral appliances for the treatment of sleep apnoea and snoring. This newly approved patent sits within an existing family of patents previously approved and, importantly, provides Oventus with patent protection in its key target market of the US and Europe. Oventus already holds patent protection in Australia.
Cash position
As at 30 June 2018, the Company maintained a solid cash position of $9.90m.
Upcoming events
Oventus will be taking part in the upcoming Sleep DownUnder 2018 conference in Brisbane from 17-20 October at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, run by the Australasian Sleep Association (ASA).
Outlook
Looking forward, Oventus is well positioned to drive sales in this current second half of calendar 2018.
Oventus invites you to follow our progress via our website at http://www.oventus.com.au
To view figures, please visit:
http://abnnewswire.net/lnk/8815GP49
About Oventus Medical Ltd
Oventus Medical Ltd (ASX:OVN) is a Brisbane based medical device company that is commercialising a unique treatment platform for the treatment of sleep apnoea and snoring. Unlike other oral appliances or CPAP interfaces, the Oventus devices have a unique and patented airway within the treatment platform that allows air to flow to the back of the mouth unobstructed while maintaining an oral seal and stable jaw position, bypassing multiple obstructions from the nose, soft palate and tongue, reducing airway collapsibility and managing mouth breathing while maintain a stable airway with or without nasal CPAP. They are particularly designed for the many people that have nasal obstructions and consequently tend to mainly breathe through their mouth. While it may seem counterintuitive, this technology actually manages mouth breathing by converting it to device breathing and normalising ventilation. The O2Vent(TM) is designed to allow nasal breathing when the nose is unobstructed, but when obstruction is present, breathing is supplemented via the airways in the appliance.
For more information on Oventus' Sleep Treatment Platform, please visit https://www.oventus.com
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