Minimally Invasive Sacroiliac Joint Surgery

SI-BONE®, Inc. Announces 60th Surgeon Trained on iFuse

U.S. surgeon training focuses on sacroiliac joint dysfunction diagnostic process and minimally invasive treatment with the iFuse Implant System™

Cupertino, California, April 6 -- SI-BONE, Inc. (Cupertino, California) announced today that it has trained 60 spine surgeons on their iFuse Implant System for minimally invasive treatment of sacroiliac (SI) joint dysfunction.

The Company has developed an advanced, rigorous, highly interactive training program for surgeons specializing in treatment of low back syndromes to introduce the iFuse for minimally invasive surgical (MIS) treatment of SI Joint pathology related to low back symptoms, a common malady in the US. The training is focused on diagnosis, anatomy, fluoroscopy and the surgical procedure and was developed by some of the leading experts in these areas.

SI-BONE has already trained surgeons in multiple specialties, including spine, neuro and orthopedic trauma surgery. These surgeons represent institutions across the United States in virtually every state.

"We expect to have over 100 surgeons trained by mid-year; what is also outstanding is the number of surgeons who are highly skilled, who are doing many cases to help patients with these sacroiliac joint issues," says Jeffrey Dunn, the CEO of SI-BONE. Additionally, Jeffrey Dunn reports: "We also have plans to train numerous surgeons in Europe by year end.”

J. Jay Halki, MD, one of the key spine surgeons who adopted the iFuse procedure early on, and is a surgeon-trainer and proctor, added, "We're very pleased to have so many surgical colleagues interested in using this minimally invasive device, iFuse, for treatment of patients with chronic SI Joint symptoms that are unrelieved by conservative medical therapy. There are a significant percentage of patients with low back syndromes that have SI joint pathology, ranging from 15-25% of all low back patients. This is a significant clinical issue and we are in a unique position to treat it with the iFuse. The iFuse is an effective minimally invasive treatment for this condition. Finally, what is so remarkable is the world class quality of the training materials. In fact, I would venture to say that this is perhaps the best training material I have ever been exposed to”

The company has conducted surgeon training sessions in many cities in the last few months including San Francisco, Las Vegas, Indianapolis, Boston, Minneapolis, Detroit, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Buffalo and Denver. SI-BONE has upcoming additional training sessions scheduled through the next several months and is conducting its first European training session in early April in Austria.

In response to increasing awareness of SI Joint dysfunction as a debilitating symptom generator, SI-BONE, Inc. developed an innovative, patented, intramedullary implant to treat the SI Joint. The company is also planning a post-market multicenter study to determine its effect over time on SI Joint pathology and on symptoms associated with SI Joint dysfunction.

The iFuse Implant System is a commercially available device in the US intended for fracture fixation of large bones and large bone fragments of the pelvis for conditions including sacroiliac joint disruptions and degenerative sacroiliitis. The iFuse procedure uses a minimal incision for delivery and implantation of small, titanium implants. The implants are coated with a porous plasma spray that acts as an interference surface, designed to help decrease implant motion. These implants have substantial thickness and sophisticated metallurgy and are able to produce a much stronger construct than that of conventional pins or screws used to surgically fix boney structures. This implant technology from SI-BONE has been previously used successfully in well over 1,000 cases of dysfunctional foot joints.

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About SI-BONE, Inc.
SI-BONE, Inc. (Cupertino, California) is a leading spinal medical device company dedicated to the development of tools and products for diagnosing and treating patients with low back issues related to sacroiliac (SI) joint pathology. The company has developed, and is manufacturing and marketing, less invasive approaches using implants for the treatment of SI Joint pathology. SI-BONE has an experienced management team with extensive experience in orthopedic and spine medical devices.