A Medical Device Daily

Aptuit (Greenwich, Connecticut) reported completing its acquisition of InfoPro Solutions (Agoura Hills, California) and that it is launching Aptuit Informatics , which will focus on providing seamless, real-time, multisite clinical information technology platforms and services to manage drug development anywhere in the world.

The company said that InfoPro adds “significant strength“ to its informatics offering. As Aptuit Informatics, the company said it will continue to leverage InfoPro's staff and technology to automate the clinical packaging and logistics process and to develop next generation informatics solutions.

Aptuit acquired InfoPro Solutions' facilities in Agoura Hills, California, Westford, Massachusetts, and Bangalore, India, and retained InfoPro Solutions' roughly 120 employees.

The company said it will now have 12 major locations in the U.S., the UK and Asia, and employ more than 2,100 people.

Angiotech Pharmaceuticals (Vancouver, British Columbia) reported expiration of the FTC's waiting period for its purchase of American Medical Systems Holdings (AMI; Lake Forest, Illinois), allowing it to proceed with the $785 million all-cash acquisition, subject to satisfying remaining conditions.

Angiotech first reported the planned purchase in February (MDD, Feb. 2, 2006).

AMI makes single-use medical device products for specialty areas such as vascular surgery, interventional radiology, general surgery, wound closure, and minimally-invasive cosmetic surgery.

In other dealmaking news:

• Discus Dental (Culver City, California) said it completed the acquisition of BriteSmile 's (Walnut Creek, California) Associated Center business and substantially all of BriteSmile's intellectual property for about $35 million in cash.

In connection with the purchase of these assets, the companies have settled all outstanding litigation between them.

BriteSmile's Associated Center business consists of about 5,000 independent dental offices in more than 40 countries. Each center uses the BriteSmile light-activated teeth whitening system consisting of the whitening light and the procedure kit. Discus will continue to manufacture, market, distribute and provide ongoing support for all BriteSmile Associated Centers.

Discus manufactures dental products and provides practice management software, practice enhancement products and services and training.

The sale did not include BriteSmile's Spa Center business, consisting of its Professional Teeth Whitening Centers currently operating in 15 cities throughout the U.S.

Previously, BriteSmile reported that it had entered into a purchase agreement in which Dental Spas (Fairfield, Iowa) had agreed to acquire the Spa Centers business, including the right to operate BriteSmile-branded centers worldwide for $20 million in cash and the assumption of $1.5 million in debt.

BriteSmile said that transaction, first disclosed in November (MDD, Nov. 23, 2005), is expected to close in April.