NuVasive, Siemens Healthineers pair up on spine surgery tech

Siemens Healthineers is tapping NuVasive for a research and commercial partnership in technology for minimally invasive spine surgeries. The companies will look to advance their proprietary technologies while building combined solutions for operating rooms.

As a first step, NuVasive will integrate its Pulse surgical automation platform with Siemens’ Cios Spin mobile 3D imager, to improve the visualization of a patient's anatomy during a procedure, and to check the placement of spinal implants.

“Currently, a number of hospitals and healthcare systems treat patients undergoing spine surgery through often cost-intensive, intraoperative CT scans with a general navigation system with limited utilization in spine surgery cases,” NuVasive’s chairman and CEO, Gregory Lucier, said in a statement.

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“The combination of NuVasive's Pulse system and the Siemens Healthineers' next-generation advanced imaging technology provides a compelling offering for hospitals and surgeons who require a scalable, cost-efficient technology that maximizes OR workflow efficiency and significantly improves visualization for spine surgery,” Lucier said. The financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

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Siemens’ Cios Spin imaging system is currently pending 510(k) clearance in the U.S. and is not yet commercially available. NuVasive’s Pulse computerized workflow platform was cleared by the FDA at the end of July. The two companies plan to feature their partnership at the annual meeting of the North American Spine Society in Los Angeles this September.

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Last year, NuVasive received FDA clearance for its LessRay system for reducing radiation exposure in hospital ORs, including in keyhole spinal surgery and other other minimally invasive procedures. LessRay is a software and hardware bundle designed to enhance fluoroscopy images using 62% to 84% lower doses of radiation.