MMI Expands Global Footprint with Entry into Asia Pacific Market

MMI (Medical Microinstruments Inc.) has forged two distribution agreements covering nearly a dozen countries in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region.

The first partnership, with Device Technologies, will help to introduce the Symani Surgical System to Hong Kong, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Macau, and New Zealand, upon applicable regulatory approvals, as well as Australia, where it has received approval from the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA). The other partnership, with TRM Korea, will facilitate the system’s entry into South Korea upon regulatory approval and will introduce microsurgical robotic technology to interested surgeons and hospitals.
 
The Symani Surgical System is a robotic technology that addresses the scale and complexities of microsurgery and supermicrosurgery. By allowing surgeons to replicate the natural movements of the human hand at the micro scale, it can expand treatment options for patients in need of soft tissue open surgical procedures, such as free flap reconstructions, lymphatic surgery, and trauma reconstructions. It is designed to help restore quality of life for more patients, accelerate the number of surgeons able to push the boundaries of complex procedures for delicate anatomy, and enable hospitals to expand their open surgical programs.
 
“Through our new partnerships in Asia Pacific, we have established roots that will ultimately help us expand patient access to robotic microsurgical and supermicrosurgical capability in a region of the world with clear demand for the technology,” said Matt Lemay, MMI’s vice president of Asia Pacific. “Surgeons from the APAC region have long been at the forefront of innovation in microsurgery, and we look forward to helping further those capabilities with the Symani Surgical System. As we advance our mission of increasing treatment options for patients with complex conditions, we are enthusiastic about our global progress and look forward to continuing our momentum in APAC and beyond.”
 
Device Technologies has provided healthcare professionals access to medical devices, including robotics solutions, for more than 30 years. It will open a new research and education center for robotic microsurgery with a premier medical institution as part of its partnership with MMI. The center will represent the first site in Central Asia where interested surgeons can learn more about the system.
 
“MMI and the Symani Surgical System are well aligned with our core mission to provide physicians and healthcare facilities with solutions that can drive improved patient outcomes,” Device Technologies Managing Director Heath Priestly said. “Originating in Australia, we have broadened our presence throughout the Asia Pacific region, establishing expertise and strong connections. We are eager to use our footprint to support MMI’s health system partnerships across the region and further increase patient access to sophisticated surgical techniques for complex conditions.”
 
TRM is the largest microsurgery company in South Korea and a pioneer in the medical technology and innovation space. The company is collaborating with a world-renowned medical institution to open its own education center where surgeons can attend informational sessions and gain hands-on learning about the Symani Surgical System.
 
MMI was founded in 2015 near Pisa, Italy, and its proprietary Symani Surgical System combines the world’s smallest wristed microinstruments with tremor-reducing and motion-scaling technologies to address significant unmet patient needs across the globe. This surgical robotic platform for open, soft tissue micro-level surgery can help address microvascular repair, lymphatic repair, and peripheral nerve repair. The Symani System is CE Marked for commercial use in Europe. In the United States, the system is not approved or cleared for commercial use. MMI is backed by international medtech investors including Andera Partners, BioStar, Deerfield Management, Fountain Healthcare Partners, Panakès Partners, RA Capital, Sambatech, and Wellington Partners.