Columna to receive AUD$3.5 million in QBF funding

Spinal implant technology company Columna has secured AUD$3.5 million in funding from Queensland BioCapital Funds for the development of spinal orthopaedic implants.

Columna has developed a minimally invasive method of replacing the nucleus in spinal discs. The technology targets chronic lower back pain caused by herniated, degenerative or bulging discs.

Abby Bloom, director of Columna, said the treatment is less invasive than the traditional method of fusing the spine, "It is a shorter, less traumatic procedure, with faster recovery. It restores patient's mobility and is performed at an earlier stage of spinal degeneration before a patient's spine has researched an extreme state of degeneration."

Columna will receive an initial tranche from QBF and additional funding on achievement of significant milestones up to 2007, with the possibility of further investment beyond this date.

Columna is planning to conduct multi-site animal trails within the next 12 months leading towards proof-of-concept human trails in 2007. Bloom said successful completion of these trials would then provide a platform for entering European and Asian regulatory domains, closely followed by US Investigational Device trials.