May 14, 2008 - USGI Medical Inc. said it has licensed its incisionless surgery technology to Intuitive Surgical for use in medical robotics applications.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
USGI's incisionless surgery platform, the EndoSurgical Operating System (EOS), is designed to address a wide range of surgical indications. Surgeons and gastroenterologists currently use the EOS to perform endolumenal (procedures within the GI tract) and translumenal procedures through the body�s natural orifices (these are commonly referred to as "NOTES" or Natural Orifice Translumenal Endoscopic Surgery).
Eliminating skin incisions may reduce the risk of infection and associated complications and may result in less post-operative pain, faster recovery time and no abdominal scars for patients.
Surgeons have used USGI's EOS to complete the first transgastric gall bladder and appendix removals in the U.S. and to close the access incision (gastrotomy) in the stomach wall during NOTES procedures. Many surgeons and gastroenterologists use the EOS routinely to perform an incisionless procedure to reduce the size of the gastric pouch and stoma in patients who experience weight regain after gastric bypass surgery, said the company.
For more information: www.usgimedical.com