TriCares Appoints Ahmed Elmouelhi as President and CEO

March 25, 2024—TriCares SAS announced the appointment of Ahmed Elmouelhi as President and CEO. Headquartered in Paris, France, the privately held company is focused on the minimally invasive treatment of tricuspid regurgitation.

According to the company, Elmouelhi has more than 20 years of medical device experience across strategy, sales and marketing, R&D, and clinical science in left atrial appendage, transcatheter aortic valve replacement, and congenital heart defect therapies.

Helmut Straubinger is retiring as President and CEO after leading the company for 8 years.

The company advised that Straubinger will work with Elmouelhi to provide a seamless transition and will continue to support the team on a consultancy basis. Since joining TriCares in March 2016, Straubinger has overseen the development and first-in-man clinical use of its minimally invasive implantable tricuspid valve.

TriCares stated that Elmouelhi served as the Senior Vice President of Product Marketing, Strategy, and Business Development at AtriCure. Previously, he held roles at Medtronic within its Structural Heart division and at AGA Medical (now part of Abbott Laboratories).

Additionally, he currently serves as the Chairman of the Minnesota chapter of the American Heart Association in Eagan, Minnesota. Elmouelhi earned Bachelor and Master degrees in Mechanical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston, Massachusetts.

In late 2022, the company announced financing for the continued development of the TriCares Topaz transfemoral tricuspid heart valve replacement system. The company stated that the funds would support an ongoing first-in-human clinical study in Belgium as well as the projected application for a pivotal investigational device exemption trial in the United States. The company also stated plans to initiate an early feasibility study in the United States and Canada. Additionally, the funding would support potential additional clinical trial applications elsewhere in Europe, along with compassionate use implantations as appropriate.