Medical Microinstruments (MMI) has secured the CE Mark approval for its Symani Surgical System to support open microsurgical procedures in Europe.

Along with the regulatory approval, the Italian medical device company has announced the commercialisation and first human use of the advanced surgical system.

The Symani Surgical System has been deployed for first four robotic surgeries performed in Florence, Italy. Three of which include complex, post-traumatic lower limb reconstructions, along with a post-oncological reconstruction of the pharynx.

MMI co-founder and CEO Giuseppe Maria Prisco said: “There is a clear demand for robotics in microsurgery as the limits of the human hand have already been reached.

“We founded MMI to develop a robotic system designed for and with microsurgeons that will improve outcomes and address unmet patient needs, particularly through supermicrosurgery techniques which are required for lymphatic and other extremely delicate procedures.”

Symani Surgical System features the world’s tiniest wristed instrumentation

The Symani Surgical System combines the benefits of tremor reduction and motion scaling technologies, and features the world’s smallest wristed instrumentation.

The tiny wristed instrumentation is said to provide seven degrees of freedom and dexterity beyond the reach of human hands.

The new product offering would allow more surgeons to perform microsurgery and expand the field of supermicrosurgery, said the company.

Also, the NanoWrist instruments in the system are designed to address the challenges of free-flap reconstructions, replantations, congenital malformations, peripheral nerve repairs and lymphatic surgery.

Established in 2015 in Italy, MMI is engaged in development of robotic systems to enhance surgical performance, and help surgeons obtain superior outcomes in microsurgery.

University of Pennsylvania plastic surgery division professor L Scott Levin said: “Microsurgery and supermicrosurgery – as a tool, technique and discipline – continue to evolve.

“The use of robotics holds great promise to advance the specialty of microsurgery and improve care for patients affected by trauma, cancer, congenital malformations and even chronic conditions such as lymphedema.”

MMI clinical development co-founder and vice president Hannah Teichmann said: “We are proud to bring this innovation to European patients and look forward to enabling surgeons worldwide to address challenging procedures on extremely small anatomy with increased precision, reproducibility and efficiency.”

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