News

ORANGE, Calif. July 25, 2024 – Providence St. Joseph Hospital announced it has successfully performed the world’s first robotic spinal surgery using a new open spine platform by eCential Robotics to implant a Spineart medical device.

eCential Robotics, a surgical robotics company which developed the open surgical platform and Spineart, a leader in spine surgery innovation, are collaborators in a new age of open technology sharing that allows cross-functional use of implantation devices and robotic surgical platforms.

“In our relentless pursuit of innovation and excellence in patient care, we were eager to utilize the solutions provided by Spineart and eCential,” said Erick Westbroek*, M.D., Providence St. Joseph spinal surgeon. “The integration of Spineart’s advanced implant system with eCential’s open robotic platform will enable us to perform minimally invasive surgeries with high predictability, reproducibility and outcomes.”

Providence St. Joseph Hospital has become the first clinical institution in the world to be equipped with the state-of-the-art robot, and the recent surgeries are the first in the United States to be used successfully in conjunction with Spineart implants.

“St. Joseph Hospital has built a strong reputation for world-class surgical care, and our patients often travel from far and wide to seek treatment and care from our stellar spine and orthopedic surgeons, who are armed with cutting-edge technology,” said Brian Helleland, chief executive of Providence St. Joseph Hospital and the Orange County/High Desert area. “These advances provide yet another sophisticated platform for our surgeons to do what they do best.”

“We are thrilled to announce the installation of this state-of-the-art robot at St. Joseph Hospital,” said Jerome Trividic, CEO of Spineart. “We believe this advancement will greatly benefit our customers, hospitals, surgeons, and patients by enhancing surgical precision and improving patient outcomes.”

St. Joseph’s surgical cases for eCential Robotics are a first-in-human use of its unified robotic technology, as well as the start of eCential operations in the US. It also marks the introduction of cutting-edge solutions that address the evolving needs of surgeons and patients worldwide.

“We are pleased to see the adoption of our technology in the US,” Clément Vidal, CEO of eCential Robotics. “There is strong interest and momentum for our open solution because it allows surgeons to select the optimal implant system for each patient while providing financial advantages to hospitals. Our platform is described as the smartphone of surgical robots.”

* Dr. Erick Westbroek is a paid consultant of Spineart. His statements represent his own opinions based on personal experience and are not necessarily those of Spineart.

Geneva, Switzerland – June 28, 2024 – Spineart, a fast-growing company specialized in spine surgery innovation, is pleased to announce the appointment of Laurent Nodé-Langlois as Chief Technology Officer.

In his new role, Laurent will be based in the United States and will lead Spineart’s strategic initiatives in enabling technologies, focusing on digital surgical planning, navigation and robotics.

Laurent joins Spineart with over 25 years of experience in biomechanics, surgical navigation, innovation and intellectual property. Prior to joining Spineart, he served as Managing Director at General Electric, playing a pivotal role in advancing GE Healthcare’s 3D imaging and navigation technologies.

“We are delighted to welcome Laurent Nodé-Langlois to Spineart as our Chief Technology Officer,” said Jerome Trividic, CEO of Spineart. “His extensive expertise and proven track record in leading transformative advancements in enabling technologies will be instrumental as we continue to innovate and expand our capabilities in spine surgery.”

As Chief Technology Officer, Laurent will oversee Spineart’s enabling technologies strategy, including managing our investments and collaborations with healthtech and deeptech startups, as well as enhancing Spineart’s intellectual property portfolio. This strategic new Executive role underlines Spineart’s commitment to deliver cutting-edge solutions for spine surgeons worldwide.

“I am excited to join Spineart and lead the Enabling Technologies business unit at such a pivotal time in the industry,” said Laurent Nodé-Langlois. “I look forward to leveraging my experience and collaborating with the talented team at Spineart and their partners to advance our technological capabilities and drive innovation that improves patient outcomes.”

Spineart proudly announces the 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its SCARLET® AC-Ti secured anterior cervical cage.

The SCARLET® AC-Ti builds on a decade of experience with the SCARLET® system. The SCARLET® AC-Ti addition introduces new features such as the MIMETIX® morphometric profile, developed with digital models of the vertebrae to optimize the contact surface between implant and endplates. The system allows for fixation with screws and anchors.

The SCARLET® AC-Ti cervical cage utilizes Spineart’s proprietary Ti-LIFE technology¹. Ti-LIFE technology, a proprietary additive manufacturing process, has a porous structure that closely mimics the trabecular bone structure.

“This approval underscores our commitment to innovation, continuously evolving our most successful products, such as the SCARLET® system” said Alessia Erlingher, Chief Commercial Officer at Spineart.

SpinEM Robotics, a leading deep tech startup specializing in cutting-edge navigation solutions for robotic spinal surgery, is thrilled to announce a significant milestone in its innovation journey. The company has successfully closed a Series A2 funding round, securing a €10 million ($11 million) strategic investment from Spineart, a global leader in spine surgery innovation.

This investment marks the beginning of an exciting development collaboration between SpinEM Robotics and Spineart. Together, the companies aim to revolutionize the field of spinal surgery by combining SpinEM Robotics’ advanced navigation and robotic assistance technology with Spineart’s expertise in surgical solutions. By focusing on improving accuracy and eliminating the reliance on 3D cameras in navigation and robotics, the partnership will address the evolving needs of surgeons and patients worldwide.

Stephane Morvan, CEO of SpinEM Robotics, highlighted the significance of the collaboration, stating: “Led by industry visionary Stéphane Lavallée, SpinEM Robotics has developed groundbreaking technologies that will redefine the standard of care in navigated and robotically enabled spinal surgery. Our solutions seamlessly integrate human-robot interfaces, enhancing surgical precision and efficiency.”

Jerome Trividic, CEO of Spineart, expressed his enthusiasm for the strategic partnership, stating, “We are excited to integrate SpinEM Robotics’ transformative navigation and robotics technology into our portfolio. This collaboration underscores our commitment to delivering innovative solutions that empower surgeons, hospitals, and, most importantly, enable patients’ return to active life.”

This strategic investment not only strengthens SpinEM Robotics’ position in the market but also leverages the synergies between SpinEM Robotics, Spineart, and the eCential Robotics open platform.

Spineart has successfully raised a CHF20 million convertible financing. The funding comes on the heels of the completion of enrollment in the two BAGUERA® C IDE studies, underlining Spineart’s commitment to advancing spinal surgery through large scale investments in research and development. More than CHF15 million of the funding was contributed by existing shareholders and employees, with the remaining portion sourced from new investors, above its CHF20 million initial target.

“We are thrilled to announce the successful closure of our CHF20 million convertible financing round, which underscores the confidence and support of our investors in Spineart’s vision and innovative technologies,” said Jerome Trividic, CEO of Spineart. “The overwhelming participation from existing shareholders, as well as the addition of new investors, is a testament to the potential of our BAGUERA® C cervical disc prosthesis and our commitment to improve spinal surgery through enabling technologies and robotic navigation.”

The proceeds from the financing round will be used for several strategic initiatives. These include investments in novel enabling technologies, continued follow-up of patients enrolled in the two BAGUERA® C IDE studies, completion by the end of 2024 of a new 43,000sqft / 4,300 m² factory currently under construction near Geneva and the opening this summer of Spineart’s new R&D and Training Center for Enabling Technologies in Dallas, Texas.

About the BAGUERA® C IDE studies:

The BAGUERA® C IDE studies are pivotal in evaluating the safety and efficacy of Spineart’s innovative BAGUERA® C cervical disc prosthesis, designed to address degenerative cervical disc disorders. The completion of enrollment in these studies marks a crucial step forward in bringing this new technology to market in the United States.

Spineart SA today announced it has completed enrollment in its U.S. IDE trial studying the BAGUERA®C Cervical Disc Prosthesis in patients with cervical disc disease at two contiguous levels between C3 to C7 compared to a commercially marketed cervical disc implant.

The multi-center, prospective, randomized controlled trial enrolled over 300 patients at 25 sites across the United States. The primary endpoint of the study is the clinical success rate of BAGUERA®C in two contiguous levels from C3 to C7 compared with two-level cervical disc replacement with a commercially available disc replacement implant. The Company announced the completion of enrollment for its one-level IDE trial at the end of February 2024.

Jerome Trividic, CEO of Spineart, said, “The enrollment completion of our two-level BAGUERA®C IDE study marks a significant milestone in Spineart’s ambition to emerge as a global leader in spine arthroplasty. Coupled with the ongoing one-level BAGUERA®C IDE study, Spineart is spearheading the gathering of crucial long-term clinical evidence from nearly 600 artificial disc recipients across the United States. This unprecedented achievement underscores our commitment to advancing the adoption of cutting-edge technologies in spinal surgery. We extend our sincere gratitude to our esteemed investigators and their teams whose dedicated participation has been instrumental in this endeavor. We eagerly anticipate bringing these two studies to fruition.”

Domagoj Coric, neurosurgeon at Carolina Neurosurgery & Spine Associates in Charlotte, NC, and co-lead investigator of the IDE trials, stated, “The outcomes from this study will further build the level I evidence supporting the safety and effectiveness of cervical disc arthroplasty with its head-to-head comparison against another cervical implant with similar design features.”

The BAGUERA®C Cervical Disc prosthesis is evaluated in two separate IDE trials in the U.S. for one- and two-level cervical disc disease. The BAGUERA®C implant has been commercially available in selected European and worldwide markets since 2008. Internationally, early long-term feedback has shown substantial improvement in patient pain scores and functional improvement after treatment.