16 New U.S. and International Patents Issued over Past Year

REDWOOD CITY, CA / ACCESSWIRE / March 30, 2022 / Avinger, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGR), a commercial-stage medical device company developing and marketing the first and only intravascular image-guided, catheter-based system for diagnosis and treatment of vascular disease, today announced the issuance of three new U.S. patents in March 2022 and provided an update on the expansion of its intellectual property portfolio.

The following three new U.S. patents expanding intellectual property protection for Avinger's proprietary imaging platform and image-guided therapeutic devices were issued in March 2022:

• U.S. patent 11,284,839, Optical Coherence Tomography for Biological Imaging, broadens coverage for Avinger's proprietary OCT imaging platform.
• U.S. patent 11,284,916, Atherectomy Catheters and Occlusion Crossing Devices, expands coverage for Avinger's Pantheris® OCT-guided family of atherectomy catheters.
• U.S. patent 11,278,248, OCT Imaging Catheter with Lag Correction, expands intellectual property protection related to Avinger's Tigereye™ image-guided CTO-crossing catheters.

Avinger increased its patent portfolio significantly over the past year, with 12 new patents issued in the U.S. and 4 new patents issued in international markets. With the addition of these patents and new filings made during the year, Avinger's intellectual property portfolio now includes 187 patents and pending applications, including 49 issued and allowed patents in the U.S. and 77 issued and allowed patents outside the U.S. The portfolio has broad applicability in the areas of atherectomy, CTO-crossing and intravascular imaging for both peripheral and coronary applications.

"As we expand our intellectual property portfolio, we are introducing new innovations in our products and advancing our proprietary OCT imaging platform," commented Jeff Soinski, Avinger's President and CEO. "Over the past few years, we have commercialized three new OCT-guided therapeutic devices, including our next generation Pantheris, Pantheris SV, and Tigereye devices. We are taking a major leap forward this year with the introduction of our Lightbox 3 next-generation imaging console. In addition, we are completing development and anticipate filing 510(k) applications for two new-image-guided devices in 2022. Our expanding intellectual property portfolio provides the foundation for these innovations and an important competitive advantage as we bring new products and technologies to market."

About Avinger, Inc.
Avinger is a commercial-stage medical device company that designs and develops the first and only image-guided, catheter-based system for the diagnosis and treatment of patients with Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD). PAD is estimated to affect over 12 million people in the U.S. and over 200 million worldwide. Avinger is dedicated to radically changing the way vascular disease is treated through its Lumivascular platform, which currently consists of the Lightbox imaging console, the Ocelot and Tigereye^TM family of chronic total occlusion (CTO) catheters, and the Pantheris® family of atherectomy devices. Avinger is based in Redwood City, California. For more information, please visit www.avinger.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include statements regarding our future performance, our product development efforts, the potential applications of our intellectual property, and the timing of the submission and approval of 510(k) applications. Such statements are based on current assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially. These risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, include the resource requirements related to Lightbox 3 and the development of our first coronary applications, the efficacy of such products, and competition from other products; as well as the other risks described in the section entitled "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 22, 2022, and in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof and should not be unduly relied upon. Avinger disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

Investor Contact:
Mark Weinswig
Chief Financial Officer
Avinger, Inc.
(650) 241-7916
ir@avinger.com

Matt Kreps
Darrow Associates Investor Relations
(214) 597-8200
mkreps@darrowir.com

SOURCE: Avinger, Inc.