Kestra Medical Technologies, Ltd. (NASDAQ: KMTS), a US-based wearable medical device and digital healthcare company, announced on Tuesday that it has entered a strategic collaboration with Israeli-American medical technology company Biobeat Technologies, Ltd. to expand diagnostic insight for patients prescribed the ASSURE Wearable Cardioverter Defibrillator.

The agreement includes an exclusive licence and co-development arrangement, alongside a USD5m equity investment by Kestra in Biobeat's Series B financing. Biobeat has developed an FDA-cleared, cuffless, patch-worn ambulatory blood pressure monitoring device that uses photoplethysmography to deliver continuous, non-invasive 24-hour blood pressure data.

Kestra plans to integrate Biobeat's technology into its product portfolio, enabling ambulatory blood pressure monitoring data for patients using the ASSURE Wearable Cardioverter Defibrillator.

The collaboration follows Kestra's publication of the prospective real-world study of wearable defibrillators, the ASSURE Wearable Cardioverter Defibrillator Clinical Evaluation Post-Approval Study. Data from the study showed that 72% of patients were hypertensive, underlining the challenges of blood pressure management during cardiac recovery and optimisation of guideline-directed medical therapy.