TransEnterix Appoints Senior Surgical Officer

TransEnterix Inc. has appointed Theodore N. Pappas, M.D., as the company’s senior surgical officer. In this role, Pappas will work closely with management on clinical and regulatory strategy as well as guide continued development efforts to maximize surgical value.
 
“Dr. Pappas is a pioneer in advancing minimally invasive surgery and we are pleased that he has joined our team. He has co-authored over 300 peer-reviewed papers and book chapters, edited seven books and mentored over 225 general surgery, laparoscopic, and oncologic surgery residents and fellows,” said Todd M. Pope, president and CEO of TransEnterix. “Dr. Pappas will help direct the clinical and development efforts of our robotic technology to have the greatest impact in advancing surgery around the world.”
 
Pappas brings more than 30 years of experience at the highest levels of academic surgical innovation to TransEnterix. He is the Distinguished Professor of Surgical Innovation in the Duke University School of Medicine and a practicing surgeon in the Duke University Health System. Pappas will maintain his existing positions at Duke.
 
Pappas joined the Duke University School of Medicine in 1988 and has held numerous leadership positions in the school, Duke University Health System, Private Diagnostic Center, and the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Durham, N.C.
 
Dr. Pappas also serves as a member of the editorial board of several medical journals, including lead editor of the Atlas of Laparoscopic Surgery. He is a past president of the American Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association and serves as a senior director on the American Board of Surgery.
 
“I am very pleased to join TransEnterix in its efforts to advance surgery through the use of robotics,” said Pappas. “The company and I share the vision that innovative technologies can provide surgeons with solutions to meaningful challenges in many different types of surgery.”
 
TransEnterix develops robotics technology that improves minimally invasive surgery. The Research Triangle Park, N.C.-based company is focused on the development and commercialization of the ALF-X System, a multi-port robotic system that brings the advantages of robotic surgery to patients while enabling surgeons with innovative technology such as haptic feedback and eye tracking camera control. The company is also developing the SurgiBot System, a single-port, robotically enhanced laparoscopic surgical platform. The ALF-X has been granted a CE Mark, and is commercially available in Europe, but is not available for sale in the United States.