Mazor Robotics Ltd. (Nasdaq: MZOR; TASE:MZOR) today announced the first use of its Renaissance robotic guidance system in brain surgery. Dr. Nizam Razack successfully performed the world’s first deep brain stimulation (DBS) using the system at Celebration Health Hospital in Orlando, Florida.
DBS is a procedure to surgically implant a small battery-operated medical device called a neurostimulator to deliver electrical stimulation to targeted areas in the brain that control movement to block the abnormal nerve signals that cause the debilitating neurological symptoms of Parkinson’s disease and essential tremor, such as trembling and slowed movement. Utilizing Renaissance’s proprietary pre-operative planning software, surgeons can determine the optimal trajectory for implanting the electrodes beforehand and use the guidance unit to execute the implantation with precision.
Mazor cites the Parkinson's Disease Foundation as saying that 30,000 people with Parkinson's have undergone DBS, and quotes "Progress in Brain Research" as saying that there are 8,000-10,000 new cases a year worldwide.
Renaissance has also been utilized successfully in 36 brain biopsy procedures in Germany. Mazor says that this could be a major application the technology, citing a report by "US News and World Report" that there are 180,000 new diagnoses of brain tumors a year. The company is planning a wider commercial launch for the brain application in early 2014.
The Renaissance system is currently being used in spine procedures at 54 hospitals worldwide in thousands of cases, ranging from minimally-invasive one-level fusions to complex deformity reconstructions. The company claims the system increases the accuracy rate of procedures by 98%.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on September 3, 2013
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