A subsidiary of Surgical Innovations Group has signed a three-year exclusive UK distribution agreement with a surgical robot manufacturer.
Elemental Healthcare, based in Berkshire, signed the exclusive deal with DistalMotion SA.
The ‘Dexter’ robot brings a new dimension to the clinical efficacy of robotic surgery, allowing a surgeon to swap from robotic to laparoscopic surgery and back as required within the sterile field.
The robot will be CE marked in mid-2019, giving Elemental Healthcare time to train a dedicated team in preparation for its launch.
“The market for surgical robots in the UK is limited by the cost and by the range of applications for which existing competitors are appropriate,” said Adam Power, group development director of Surgical Innovations Group.
“‘Dexter’ offers a much broader range of surgical opportunities and employs a novel funding model. As a consequence, we expect ‘Dexter’ by DistalMotion SA to address the issues limiting the growth of surgical robots in the UK and to be a more acceptable solution for NHS and Private Hospitals.”
Dr Matthias Reif, head of sales and marketing of DistalMotion, described Elemental as “a proven partner” to commercialise innovative technology.
“The UK market is among the largest medical device markets in Europe, and a key region for Distalmotion to prove robotic surgery can be simplified and integrated into laparoscopic surgery,” he added.