WALTHAM, Mass., Sept. 11, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BG Medicine, Inc. (Nasdaq:BGMD), a company focused on the development and commercialization of novel cardiovascular diagnostics, announced today that the company has appointed Howard Rosen and Thomas Bendix Mortensen to its senior management team as it continues to grow the company's commercial operations. Mr. Rosen has joined the company as Vice President, Sales and Marketing. Previously, Mr. Rosen served as Director, Cardiovascular Service Line Franchise with Boston Scientific. Mr. Rosen's experience encompasses the successful creation and implementation of strategic marketing initiatives across a wide range of cardiovascular device franchises. Mr. Mortensen joins the company as Vice President, Sales and Marketing in Europe. Previously, Mr. Mortensen held the position of Vice President, Market Development Europe for CircuLite, Inc. and Marketing Director International – Peripheral Vascular Division for EV3. Mr. Mortensen has a strong global sales and marketing background with a particular focus in cardiovascular products and new product entries.
"Our new executives' extensive experience in developing and implementing high impact programs will further strengthen BG Medicine's commercial operations capabilities," said Eric Bouvier, President and Chief Executive Officer of BG Medicine. "Their depth of knowledge and experience in the cardiovascular sector will enable them to immediately add value to our efforts to expand galectin-3 testing sales in the United States and Europe."
For more on their backgrounds, please see their biographies posted on our website at the following links:
http://www.bg-medicine.com/about/leadership/#hrosen
http://www.bg-medicine.com/about/leadership/#tmortensen
About Galectin-3 and Heart Failure
Galectin-3 is a unique carbohydrate-binding lectin, or protein, that binds to carbohydrates called beta-galactosides. Galectin-3 has been implicated in a variety of biological processes important in the development and progression of heart failure, and is believed to be a primary mediator of progressive cardiac fibrosis (abnormal thickening and stiffening of the heart muscle) and adverse remodeling (changes in the structure of the heart). Higher levels of galectin-3 are associated with a more aggressive form of heart failure and 30% or more of mild to moderate heart failure patients will have elevated levels of galectin-3. Heart failure affects an estimated 5.8 million Americans, with approximately 670,000 new cases occurring each year. The direct and indirect cost of heart failure in the United States for 2010 is estimated to be $39.2 billion.
About BG Medicine, Inc.
BG Medicine, Inc. (Nasdaq:BGMD) is a life sciences company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of novel cardiovascular diagnostics to address significant unmet medical needs, improve patient outcomes and contain healthcare costs. The Company's first commercialized product, the BGM Galectin-3® test for use in patients with heart failure, is available in the United States and Europe. BG Medicine is also developing the CardioSCORE TM test, a blood test designed to identify individuals at high risk for near-term major cardiovascular events, such as heart attack and stroke. For additional information about BG Medicine, heart failure and galectin-3 testing, please visit www.bg-medicine.com and www.galectin-3.com.
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