ZURICH– VirtaMed, a world leader in medical simulation training, and Medical Microinstruments (MMI) SpA, a robotics company dedicated to improving clinical outcomes for patients undergoing microsurgery, have announced a partnership where surgeons using MMI’s Symani® Surgical System will have access to groundbreaking surgical simulations, leading to advanced skill development and robotic system enhancements.
Microsurgeries are a category of complex surgical procedures that focus on reconstructive surgery and require optical magnification, precision, and dexterity. VirtaMed is developing custom surgical simulations for the Symani System that include aspects of virtual reality (VR) and allow surgeons to train on the system itself. These VR-enabled simulations will allow surgeons to practice a variety of microsurgeries using the Symani robotic system and simulated surgical scenarios.
This will provide MMI and surgeons with a range of benefits including the ability to improve and measure surgical skills in a safe, simulated environment, and access to data-driven insights into surgical approaches that can be used to make enhancements to the Symani System. As robotic microsurgeries continue to grow, opportunities for advanced product development and training are essential to improve patient safety and outcomes.
“Surgeon confidence and patient safety are essential to successful outcomes. This belief has guided our product and partnership approach since the company was formed,” said Stefan Tuchschmid, Co-CEO at VirtaMed. “Our team is excited to partner with MMI, whose microinstruments truly expand human capabilities in microsurgery. By offering surgeons the opportunity to use simulations to practice these highly complex surgeries, we create an environment of continual improvement with a focus on patient care.”
The Symani Surgical System is the only robotic platform dedicated to microsurgery that offers wristed microinstruments designed to improve a surgeon’s ability to suture delicate anatomy, which can be difficult to access. The system combines NanoWrist® Instruments, featuring the world’s smallest robotic wrist, with NanoScale® Technology to scale movements and reduce tremor to push the boundaries of micro and supermicrosurgery. Together, these innovations are intended to increase dexterity and precision, reduce complications and reinterventions, and decrease the learning curve for performing complex microsurgical tasks.
In addition, the integration of VirtaMed simulations into the Symani development process will allow MMI to repeatedly and efficiently test new features and solutions that will optimize the product life cycle.
“We were looking for a portable solution that demonstrates the experience and advantages of Symani while providing a realistic microsurgery training environment,” said Mark Toland, CEO of MMI SpA. “In VirtaMed, we’ve found a partner who shares our mission to improve patient outcomes and the quality of care through comprehensive training methods, allowing us to enrich the training experiences of our surgeons and drive adoption of robotic microsurgery.”
