Intuitive Surgical names new C-suite leaders, reports Street-beating Q3

Intuitive Surgical CEO Gary Guthart [Photo courtesy of Intuitive]

Intuitive Surgical (NSDQ:ISRG) today announced changes in the ranks of its senior leadership as the surgical robotics maker released Q3 results that exceeded expectations.

Sunnyvale, California-based Intuitive launched two new functional organizations — Strategy and Growth, and Global Business Services — and named leaders who will take over effective Jan. 1.

Dave Rosa, a 25-year veteran at Intuitive, will fill the new position of EVP and chief strategy and growth officer, while Henry Charlton (with more than 18 years of experience at the company) will serve as chief commercial officer.

Marshall Mohr, who has served as CFO for 15 years, will take the new position of EVP for Global Business Services. Replacing Mohr at CFO is Jamie Samath, who has been with Intuitive since 2013 and oversaw most finance functions as SVP of finance.

Read more
  • 0

Medtronic’s Hugo robotic-assisted surgical system wins regulatory nod in Europe

Medtronic’s Hugo robot-assisted surgery system [Image courtesy of Medtronic]

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) announced that it received CE mark approval in Europe for its Hugo robotic-assisted surgery system.

Fridley, Minnesota-based Medtronic’s CE mark covers urologic and gynecologic procedures, which make up approximately half of all robotic procedures performed today, according to a news release.

Last month, the company said it had been expecting approval soon.

Get the full story at our sister site, MassDevice.

Read more
  • 0

Medtronic’s Hugo robotic-assisted surgical system wins regulatory nod in Europe

Medtronic’s Hugo robot-assisted surgery system [Image courtesy of Medtronic]Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) announced that it received CE mark approval in Europe for its Hugo robotic-assisted surgery system.

Fridley, Minnesota-based Medtronic’s CE mark covers urologic and gynecologic procedures, which make up approximately half of all robotic procedures performed today, according to a news release. Last month, the company said it had been expecting to receive such approval soon before it finally came yesterday.

Hugo, which in May garnered FDA investigational device exemption, offers a modular, multi-quadrant platform designed for a broad range of surgical procedures with wristed instruments, 3D visualization and surgical video capture option in Touch Surgery Enterprise. In June, Medtronic announced the first clinical procedure with Hugo in Chile.

“This day has been a long time coming, not just for Medtronic, but for the surgeons and hospital leaders who ha…

Read more
  • 0

FDA clears expanded machine vision capabilities for Asensus Surgical’s robotic surgery system

Asensus Surgical (NYSE American: ASXC) announced today that FDA has cleared next-gen augmented intelligence capabilities on its Senhance system’s Intelligent Surgical Unit.

The ISU already enabled machine vision-driven camera control; the system responded to the surgeon’s commands and even recognized certain objects and locations in the surgical field. The new ISU features expand the capabilities and introduce more advanced features, including 3D measurement, digital tagging, image enhancement and enhanced camera control — a first for soft-tissue abdominal surgery, according to the company.

“The addition of these pioneering digital capabilities on our existing surgical platform provides real-time intraoperative digital tools to surgeons and underscores our commitment to delivering our vision for performance-guided surgery,”  Asensus Surgical CEO Anthony Fernando said in a news release. “This is the latest example of our progress toward d…

Read more
  • 0

Smith+Nephew to expand into hip surgery with Cori surgical system

Smith+Nephew’s Real Intelligence digital ecosystem [Image courtesy of S+N]Smith+Nephew (LSE:SN, NYSE:SNN) is seeking FDA clearance for its RI.Hip Navigation software that would enable the use of its Cori surgical system for total hip arthroplasty.

The London-based medtech company touted the software today at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) 2021 annual meeting in San Diego. The handheld Cori system is already FDA-cleared for both total and unicompartmental knee arthroplasty.

Competitors Stryker and Zimmer Biomet already have their Mako and Rosa systems respectively active in the total hip surgery space.

Smith+Nephew officials think they have an edge with small, portable, relatively affordable Cori because the surgeon gets to hold a handheld tool; there is also less radiation exposure associated with preoperative CT imaging. Robotics come into play because the tool’s spinning burr automatically stops when the surgeon is outside…

Read more
  • 0

Medtronic CEO Geoff Martha touts progress on renal denervation and Hugo robotics

Medtronic CEO Geoff Martha

Medtronic (NYSE: MDT) is boosting its research and development spending in fiscal year 2022 by more than 10 percent, which CEO Geoff Martha described as the largest dollar increase ever for the Fridley, Minn.-based medical device manufacturer.

“The investments we’re making in our pipeline will play a key role in accelerating our top-line growth, and we’re at the front end of some large opportunities to win share, create new markets and disrupt existing markets,” he said in a quarterly earnings call with investors and analysts this week.

Topping Medtronic’s list of golden opportunities are its renal denervation treatment for hypertension and its Hugo soft tissue robotic-assisted surgery system, two areas where Medtronic executives see multibillion-dollar businesses.

Medtronic’s investments in Hugo and renal denervation are expected to cost $400 milli…

Read more
  • 0

Intuitive Surgical to invest $500M in Georgia campus

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG) will spend more than $500 million to expand its Peachtree Corners campus northeast of Atlanta, according to Georgia Gov. Brian P. Kemp’s office.

The Sunnyvale, Calif.–based robotic surgery systems company — the dominant player in the space — has had a presence in Georgia for a decade. The plan is to expand the Peachtree Corners campus to 750,000 square feet of manufacturing and engineering operations, training facilities for surgeons and hospital care teams, and administrative offices.

The expansion will take place in phases, with completion in 2024. Intuitive plans to add 1,200 jobs on top of the 180 professionals it already has based in Peachtree Corners.

“Intuitive needs a highly educated, committed, and diverse workforce; quality infrastructure; and the right geography to meet the rising demand for minimally invasive surgical technologies,” Intuitive CEO Gary Guthart said in a news release out of Kemp’s o…

Read more
  • 0

FDA clears articulating instruments for Asensus Surgical’s robotic system

Asensus Surgical (NYSE American: ASXC) announced today that FDA has cleared 5 mm diameter articulating instruments for the company’s Senhance surgical system.

The instruments previously received a CE mark in the EU. They provide better access to difficult-to-reach areas of the anatomy by providing two additional degrees of freedom.

“Bringing the benefits of 5 mm articulating instruments to the Senhance surgical system in the U.S. will widen the clinical utility and value of our platform,” Asensus Surgical  CEO Anthony Fernando said in a news release. “Combining articulation and haptics with augmented intelligence is a very promising development for performance-guided surgery.”

The Senhance system is a digital laparoscopic platform that leverages augmented intelligence, with the goal of boosting performance and patient outcomes. Senhance includes surgical assurance through haptic feedback, eye-tracking camera control and 3D visualization. Asen…

Read more
  • 0

CMR Surgical raises $600M to expand Versius robot commercialization

CMR Surgical officials tout the Verius system’s size, portability and versatility. [Image courtesy of CMR Surgical]CMR Surgical has raised $600 million in a Series D financing round led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and co-led by Ally Bridge Group.

The Cambridge, U.K.–based company said yesterday that it will use the money to boost the global commercialization of its Versius surgical robotic system, making keyhole surgery accessible to more people worldwide. Business Weekly notes that the newest money raise means that CMR Surgical has brought in nearly $1 billion in recent years.

CMR has already launched Versius in Europe, Australia, India and the Middle East. Company officials tout the Verius system’s size, portability and versatility.

“This latest financing equips CMR with significant funds to accelerate our mission of bringing Versius to hospitals worldwide, whilst providing full flexibility to achieve our goals. This major injection of cap…

Read more
  • 0

Medtronic announces first clinical procedure with its Hugo robot

Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) announced today that it completed the first patient procedure with the Hugo robotic-assisted surgery system.

Fridley, Minn.-based Medtronic said in a news release that urological surgeon Dr. Ruben Olivares performed the robotic prostatectomy on June 19 at Clínica Santa Maria in Santiago, Chile. The procedure marks the beginning of the Hugo RAS system patient registry, which will collect clinical data as the company seeks various global regulatory submissions.

“I’m proud to have performed the very first clinical procedure with the Hugo RAS system,” Olivares said in the release. “From the open console and modular platform to the instrumentation I know and trust, this innovative system is truly a partner in the OR. I feel energized by the possibility the Hugo RAS system brings to patients and clinicians and am honored to help pave the way for future surgeons, being able to offer a minimal invasive alternative on a regul…

Read more
  • 0

Titan Medical collects $10M milestone payment from Medtronic

Titan Medical (TSX:TMD;OTC:TITFX) announced today that it received another $10 million for licensing developed technologies to Medtronic (NYSE:MDT).

Toronto-based Titan Medical completed the second technical milestone under the development and license agreement it made with Medtronic in June 2020. The company achieved the first milestone in the agreement in October 2020 by raising $18 million in capital.

Shares of TMDI shot up nearly 6% to $1.94 apiece in morning trading today. MassDevice‘s MedTech 100 Index — which includes stocks of the world’s largest medical device companies — was up slightly.

According to a news release, should Titan complete the third technical milestone, it would be in line to receive an additional payment of approximately $11 million.

The development and license agreement between Titan and Medtronic covers the development of robotic-assisted surgical technologies for use by both companies in their respective bu…

Read more
  • 0

Intuitive Surgical up on Street-beating Q1

Intuitive Surgical (NYSE:ISRG) stock rose nearly 10% today, a day after the company reported first-quarter results that handily beat Wall Street expectations.

Baird upgraded Intuitive’s stock rating to outperform after the news yesterday evening, according to media reports.

The Sunnyvale, Calif.–based robotic surgery company reported profits of $435.2 million, or $3.51 per share, on sales of nearly $1.3 billion for the three months ended March 31, 2021, for a bottom-line gain of 37.6% on sales growth of 17.5% compared with Q1 2020.

Adjusted to exclude one-time items, earnings per share were $3.52, 11¢ ahead of The Street, where analysts were looking for EPS of $3.63 on sales of $1.11 billion.

Compared with Q1 2020, systems revenue grew 30%. Instruments and accessories revenue was up 14%.

Intuitive CEO Gary Guthart cautioned during the company’s earnings call that recovery of business has been uneven: “Our experience shows …

Read more
  • 0