CARLSBAD, Calif. and TORONTO, Feb. 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — SeaSpine Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ: SPNE), a global medical technology company focused on surgical solutions for the treatment of spinal disorders, and 7D Surgical, Inc., a privately-held Toronto-based company developing advanced image guidance technologies and machine-vision-based registration algorithms to improve surgical workflow and patient care, today announced that they have entered into a strategic alliance agreement. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Under the agreement, SeaSpine and 7D Surgical will integrate and co-market their combined product offerings, as well as develop SeaSpine-specific instrumentation optimized to work with 7D Surgical’s flagship Machine-vision Image Guided Surgery (MvIGS) platform for spinal and cranial surgeries. The agreement allows SeaSpine to offer a customized, best-in-class navigational solution to its hospital and surgeon customers on a non-exclusive basis.
The 7D Surgical MvIGS system is the only approved image guidance system that utilizes a novel and proprietary camera-based technology and machine-vision algorithms to eliminate the long-standing frustrations with legacy surgical navigational platforms. The system uses only visible light, eliminating patient and staff exposure to intraoperative radiation, which is common with other technologies. This results in a registration workflow that takes just seconds and allows the surgeon to control the system from the sterile field. 
Keith Valentine, SeaSpine President and Chief Executive Officer, said: “We have been extremely impressed by 7D’s ability to improve surgical workflow and the timing of our collaboration is ideal. With over 12 product launches expected in 2020, including limited commercial launches of our initial 3D-printed offerings and full commercial launches of our foundational Mariner system in additional market segments, such as MIS and deformity, that give us access to over $2 billion in new market opportunities, the introduction of 7D’s best-in-class navigation system further enhances our ability to offer a complete, integrated and seamless procedural solution in spine. Equally important, by using visible light, rather than fluoroscopy, the 7D Surgical System does not expose operating room personnel to unnecessary, additional radiation.”
Beau Standish, 7D Surgical Chief Executive Officer, said: “SeaSpine’s commitment to innovation and the development of complete procedural solutions combining spinal implants and orthobiologics matches perfectly with our surgeon-centric focus on improving operating room workflows. With SeaSpine’s differentiated suite of product offerings, recent capitalization and their expanding customer base, we believe this alliance will greatly expand our commercial reach by providing our hospital customers with a complete surgical solution and a capital-efficient means of acquiring the MvIGS system.”
About SeaSpine
SeaSpine (www.seaspine.com) is a global medical technology company focused on the design, development and commercialization of surgical solutions for the treatment of patients suffering from spinal disorders. SeaSpine has a comprehensive portfolio of orthobiologics and spinal implants solutions to meet the varying combinations of products that neurosurgeons and orthopedic spine surgeons need to perform fusion procedures on the lumbar, thoracic and cervical spine. SeaSpine’s orthobiologics products consist of a broad range of advanced and traditional bone graft substitutes that are designed to improve bone fusion rates following a wide range of orthopedic surgeries, including spine, hip, and extremities procedures. SeaSpine’s spinal implants portfolio consists of an extensive line of products to facilitate spinal fusion in degenerative, minimally invasive surgery (MIS), and complex spinal deformity procedures. Expertise in both orthobiologic sciences and spinal implants product development allows SeaSpine to offer its surgeon customers a differentiated portfolio and a complete solution to meet their fusion requirements. SeaSpine currently markets its products in the United States and in approximately 30 countries worldwide through a committed network of increasingly exclusive distribution partners.
About 7D Surgical
7D Surgical is a privately-owned, Toronto-based company that develops advanced optical technologies and machine vision-based registration algorithms to improve surgical workflow and patient care. 7D Surgical’s flagship FDA 510(k)-cleared and Health Canada approved MvIGS system delivers profound improvement to surgical workflows in spine and cranial surgeries. The underlying technology provides the promise of similar future advancements for other surgical specialties. Visit www.7Dsurgical.com to learn more.
Forward-Looking Statements
SeaSpine cautions you that statements included in this news release that are not a description of historical facts are forward-looking statements that are based on the Company’s current expectations and assumptions. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements relating to: the number and types of products that SeaSpine expects to launch in 2020, as well as the market segments and opportunities to which these products provide access; the ability of the alliance to expand 7D’s commercial reach; and the ability of the 7D Surgical System to provide hospital customers a complete surgical solution and/or capital-efficient means of acquiring the MvIGS system. Among the factors that could cause or contribute to material differences between the Company’s actual results and the expectations indicated by the forward-looking statements are risks and uncertainties that include, but are not limited to: surgeons’ willingness to adopt its newly launched products, including the risk that the Company’s products do not demonstrate adequate safety or efficacy, independently or relative to competitive products, to support expected levels of demand or pricing; the ability of newly launched products to perform as designed and intended and to meet the needs of surgeons and patients, including as a result of the lack of clinical validation of products in limited commercial (or “alpha”) launch; risks inherent in newly initiated collaborations, such as with 7D Surgical, or the use of nascent imaging techniques, including advanced optical technologies and machine vision-based registration algorithms; challenges and/or delay in reaching agreement with hospital customers with respect to the placement of capital equipment and the terms of any hospital purchase commitments, including the inability to place the 7D Surgical System as result of prior placement of competitive systems or conflicting purchase commitments; the ability of newly deployed products to perform as designed and intended; unexpected delay, including as a result of developing and supporting the deployment of new products, the fact that newly launched products may require substantial additional development activities, which could introduce further expense and delay, or as a result of obtaining regulatory clearances; general economic and business conditions in the markets in which the Company does business, both in the U.S. and abroad; and other risks and uncertainties more fully described in the Company’s news releases and periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company’s public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission are available at www.sec.gov.
You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date when made. SeaSpine does not intend to revise or update any forward-looking statement set forth in this news release to reflect events or circumstances arising after the date hereof, except as may be required by law.
Investor Relations Contacts
| For SeaSpine: Leigh Salvo ir@seaspine.com | For 7D Surgical: Bev Frost, Senior Marketing Manager +1 647 484-0078 contact@7dsurgical.com |