Leadership Team

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Mike Glennon

President & CEO
Mglennon@saphenamedical.com

Michael J. Glennon has been President and CEO of Saphena Medical since July 2013. He has taken the Venapax system from concept through design development, regulatory processes, FDA clearance and into the market.

Previously, Mike was instrumental in the launch and rapid growth of VasoView, the first endoscopic vessel harvesting technology, which became the standard of care in coronary bypass surgery.

Mr. Glennon was the President and Chief Executive Officer of Vortex Medical from its inception in 2008 until its acquisition in October 2012 by AngioDynamics.

He has served as a co-founding Partner of both Pavilion Holdings Group, a medical device holding company, and Pavilion Medical Innovations, a venture-backed medical device incubator, since their respective inceptions in 2007 and 2009 and also serves as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of PMI.

In addition to his responsibilities at Saphena, he has been the President and Chief Executive Officer of Cruzar Medsystems since July 2013 and has served as a director of Kaleidoscope Medical since January 2013. He has been Vice Chairman and a Director at PAVmed since October 2014.

Mr. Glennon received his B.S. in Business Administration from the University of New Hampshire.

Mark Orphanos

COO
Morphanos@saphenamedical.com

With more than 20 years of product design, manufacturing and medical device experience, Mark Orphanos oversees Saphena’s business and regulatory operations and is responsible for research and development, product development, quality and overall supply chain management.

Since our inception in 2013, he has led the development and release of Saphena’s Venapax Endoscopic Vessel Harvesting System and continues to innovate and improve upon our products and processes to ensure our products are the best available in the market.

Mark previously served as Vice President of Engineering at Primo Medical Group, a leading contract manufacturer in Massachusetts, where he led the design, development and release of several medical devices to the marketplace. Mark holds a M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Tufts University and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

Ross Garofalo

CFO
Rgarofalo@saphenamedical.com

Mr. Garofalo, who has served as the Chief Financial Officer of numerous start-ups, has extensive experience in financing and managing innovative medical device companies.

Before joining Saphena he was the CFO of Spirus Medical, Inc. from its inception until it was acquired by Olympus Corporation in 2011. Prior to that he was the CFO of Angiolink Corporation from its inception until its sale to Medtronic in 2004. Before that Mr. Garofalo was the sole proprietor of Eastern Consulting, a financial and interim CFO consulting firm located in Massachusetts. Prior to forming Eastern Consulting, Mr. Garofalo was CFO of Jandel Scientific Software until its acquisition by SPSS Inc. in 1996. Mr. Garofalo was a partner at Berg and Company, a San Francisco-based firm specializing in turnaround management and interim CFO services.

Mr. Garofalo earned his M.B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1987 and graduated first in his class with a B.B.A in 1981 from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Mr. Garofalo is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA).

"I have been very happy with the quality of the veins that our first assistants have been able to harvest with Saphena’s device. It provides us with a quality vein comparable to what we used to see with open vein harvesting.”

– Geoffrey R Cousins, MD, Cardiac Surgeon at St. Mary’s Medical Center in Huntington, WV.

“We have been able to compare Venapax to the other devices and have found less trauma to the vein during harvesting. I have seen less bleeding during harvesting as evidenced by less bruising or hematoma formation post-operatively. I am very happy with this system and prefer it for all of my patients requiring EVH."

– Nepal C Chowdhury, MD, Cardiac Surgeon St. Mary’s Medical Center, Huntington, WV

"The more cases I do the better the vein graft looks. I never have to repair anything, just tie branches."

– Eric Ping, ACNP

“The quality of the vein is more pristine with fewer avulsions and fewer thermal burns as compared to the other systems we have trialed.”

– Dr. Scott Schubach, Chairman of Cardiac Surgery, NYU Winthrop Hospital

"Since learning to use the Saphena Venapax system, my vein quality is consistently better than with any other device I have used in the last 20 years. "

– Matt Petrides PA, Manager, Cardiothoracic Surgery

This is a true minimal-touch instrument. The integrated design allows for simultaneous dissection and ligation of the branches as you move down the tunnel.

– Michael Sullivan PA-C

"The ability to dissect with minimal distortion of the vein while providing long branches decreases the risk of unseen intimal damage. I have observed excellent vein quality and no leg wound issues with the use of Venapax.”

– Dr. Steven A Leyland

"Venapax is producing the highest quality conduit I’ve seen in my years of cardiothoracic surgery. It reduces venous compression and traction, resulting in less endothelial damage, therefore enhancing graft patency. "

– Aaron Amburgey PA-C

“Since we first began using the simplified method of vein harvesting with Venapax, I have noticed a significant decrease in the learning curve of our new and inexperienced vein harvesters. "

– Dr. Scott Schubach, Chairman of Cardiac Surgery, NYU Winthrop Hospital