SI-Bone Adds to its Board

SI-Bone Inc. has expanded its Board of Directors.

The firm has appointed Martin Watson to the board, effective Jan. 1. Watson currently is a managing director for Fidelity Health Insurance Services, LLC. Before joining Fidelity, Watson was the founder and CEO of HealthMine (formerly known as SeeChange Health LLC), a population health management company that provides consumer health engagement solutions to large employers and health insurance companies. He also has served in various executive roles at UnitedHealthcare and Aetna.

“We are happy to welcome Martin to our board of directors. Martin’s experience working with large and small commercial health plans will provide significant insight and guidance for us as we continue to expand our portfolio of clinical evidence to support further adoption of iFuse among commercial health plans throughout the U.S.,” said Jeffrey Dunn, president/CEO of SI-Bone.

Clinical publications have identified the SI joint as a pain generator in 15 percent to 30 percent of low back pain patients. In addition, the prevalence of SI joint pain in post-lumbar fusion, or “failed back surgery” patients, has been shown to be up to 43 percent, industry data indicate. Of these patients, some may have degenerative sacroilitis or SI joint disruptions. Initial treatment options for patients with SI joint disorders typically involve non-surgical management and, when non-surgical management of the SI joint fails, surgical options such as the iFuse procedure may be considered.

SI-Bone, Inc. received original 510(k) clearance in November 2008 from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to market its iFuse Implant System. The CE mark for European commercialization came in November 2010.

The iFuse Implant System is a minimally invasive surgical option that uses titanium implants coated with a porous, titanium plasma spray (TPS) that acts as an interference surface, designed to help decrease implant motion, provide immediate fixation and allow for biological fixation to support long term fusion. The iFuse System is intended for sacroiliac joint fusion for conditions including SI joint dysfunction that is a direct result of SI joint disruptions and degenerative sacroiliitis.

“For the past several years, I have been impressed with SI-Bone’s focus on building clinical evidence and providing leadership through their educational efforts and I am looking forward to working with Jeff Dunn and the SI-Bone team to accelerate the adoption of this foundational approach to helping patients,” Watson said.

SI-Bone is based in San Jose, Calif.