St. Jude Medical was founded in 1976 as a heart valve company. Since then, St. Jude Medical has broadened its portfolio through internal development and strategic acquisitions, to offer a range of products for cardiac rhythm management, cardiac surgery, and cardiology/vascular access. In December 1982, the company first received U.S. FDA approval to market mechanical heart valves in United States. In 1994, St. Jude Medical acquired Pacesetter, the cardiac rhythm management business of Siemens. In 1996, St. Jude announced the acquisitions of Daig, a Minnesota-based specialty catheter company; Biocor, a tissue valve company based in Brazil; Ventritex, a California implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) company; Telectronics Pacing Systems, based in Colorado; and also Medtel, an Asia-Pacific medical products distribution business. 1999 saw the acquisitions of Angio-Seal vascular closure business from Tyco International, and Vascular Science, a Minnesota-based company developing sutureless connector (anastomotic) technologies for heart bypass surgery. Then, in September 2002, St. Jude acquired Getz Bros. Co., the largest distributor of St. Jude Medical's products in Japan.