TransEnterix said that it has leased one of its Senhance robotic surgery systems to a hospital in Japan. The announcement comes nearly two months after the Research Triangle, N.C.-based company predicted lower earnings for the fourth quarter and full year of 2019 due to sluggish sales of the system. TransEnterix touts Senhance as a more economical option when it comes to laparoscopic and robotic systems, with haptic feedback, surgeon camera control via eye sensing and improved ergonomics.
TransEnterix leased Senhance systems to two customers in the fourth quarter of 2019, one in the United States and one in Germany. St. Marianna University School of Medicine Toyoko Hospital, a hospital in the greater Tokyo metropolitan area, has entered into the latest lease agreement for a Senhance system.
“We are pleased with our continued expansion of the Senhance system into Japan, the world’s second-largest surgical robotics market, where hospitals and laparoscopic surgeons are seeking innovative robotic solutions while also maintaining per-procedure costs similar to laparoscopy,” said TransEnterix president & CEO Anthony Fernando in a news release. “We look forward to collaborating with St. Marianna University Toyoko Hospital as they launch their Senhance digital laparoscopy program. This represents our third clinical site in Japan and the second added since the beginning of 2020.”
St. Marianna University School of Medicine Toyoko Hospital is one of five hospitals in the St. Marianna University School of Medicine system, and is a 138-bed facility that provides advanced medical care, emergency medicine and comprehensive community-based healthcare.
“Being on the forefront of new technologies and innovation in surgery, especially ones that are cost-effective, is highly important to us as we seek to improve patient care,” said Dr. Nobuyoshi Miyajima, the director of St. Marianna University Toyoko Hospital. “The Senhance surgical system with its innovative unique technology in micro-laparoscopic instrumentation, advanced visualization capabilities and foundations in laparoscopy will allow us to quickly adapt and evolve our advanced minimally invasive surgical program at Toyoko Hospital.”
The Senhance system was approved for use by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare in 2019.
