At the end, Alievio management’s efforts to market their intellectual property, with a detailed document outlining the advantages of their patents, was consistent with our first impression of the team and their technology. That only compounded our disappointment with their demise. Investors were able to realize this loss to offset any unrelated investment gains. Co-Investors were Duke Angel Network, the Duke Endowment Fund, and InFocus Capital.

As glaucoma is a leading cause of irreversible vision loss, there was a growing need to address this condition. People are living longer, and existing solutions had a limited lifespan. Allevio’s solution was simple, minimally invasive, and fast — reducing surgical time when compared with other shunt procedures.

Glaucoma affects 80 million people, and $3.4 billion is currently spent annually in the United States treating this disease in the form of both drug therapy and surgery. Alievio’s shunt helped prevent vision loss with a solution that was superior to existing prescription drug therapies and surgical treatments. The device is patented, and initial trials produced positive results.