Mazor shares jump on report of first surgery

Mazor Surgical Technologies Ltd. (TASE:MZOR) today announced the first use of its SpineAssist robotic spinal surgical procedure aid for surgery of the neck vertebrae. The successful surgery increases SpineAssist's potential market by 30%.

Mazor's share jumped 15.8% by mid-afternoon to NIS 9.10, giving a market cap of NIS 113 million.

Mazor said the successful new application for the SpineAssist - surgical procedures on neck vertebra through the nape of the neck - supplemented its current use for surgical procedures on the spine in the lower and middle back.

Surgery on the neck vertebrae is considered extremely difficult and complicated because of the great risk of paralysis if the spinal cord is damaged during the procedure. Neck vertebrae procedures account for 30% of all spinal surgeries. Some of the procedures involve the insertion of implants into spinal cavities that are only a few millimeters in diameter and which contain critical nerves and arteries to the brain.

The surgery on the neck vertebrae was carried out in Germany on a patient with severe trauma of the vertebrae. The medical team used SpineAssist to navigate the location to position four titanium pins in the vertebrae. The procedure took two hours, and was completed with no complications and to the complete satisfaction of the medical team.

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on July 7, 2009