ST. LOUIS, Sept. 24, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Stereotaxis, Inc. (Nasdaq:STXS) announced today that it has received the first commercial order for its Niobe® ES magnetic navigation system in Japan from a leading hospital in Osaka. As part of its primary market strategy, the Company also announced it has established a business office in Japan under the leadership of its new Business Director, who will oversee development and operational activities, including serving as liaison with the Company's in-country distributors and other local resources.
The new customer's Niobe system will be part of a reconstructed, state-of-the-art hospital facility. Construction is expected to be complete in early 2015 and reflects the hospital's commitment to advance its medical care through the latest equipment, therapies and integrated services.
"We are proud to offer the first comprehensive robotic solution for the delivery of cardiac ablation therapy in such an important market as Japan," said William C. Mills, Stereotaxis Chief Executive Officer. "This first commercial order has given us a foothold in an electrophysiology (EP) community that is eager for innovations focused on improving the speed, accuracy and outcomes of their ablation procedures. We believe our Niobe system addresses these demands, while offering an unsurpassed safety profile, and we look forward to continued market acceptance and adoption."
Professor Hiroshi Nakagawa, Director, Clinical Catheter Ablation Program at the Heart Rhythm Institute of the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and longtime advocate of Stereotaxis technologies, echoes this sentiment. "As I mentor Japanese physicians and hospital administrators in the development of their EP programs, I see the excitement around Stereotaxis robotic solutions. There is tremendous opportunity in Japan for the revolutionary capabilities of the Niobe system," said Dr. Nakagawa.
Dr. Nakagawa, an internationally recognized EP physician and researcher, has assisted in educating physicians and the Japanese government on the clinical benefits of the Niobe system through live case demonstrations, presentations at major industry events and personal discussions.
Leading these and other efforts to build out Stereotaxis' presence in the region, the Company appointed a new Business Director effective September 1. An experienced capital sales and marketing director within the medical technology industry in Japan, the Business Director will guide key strategic initiatives while developing long-range market goals from a base of operations in central Tokyo.
About Stereotaxis
Stereotaxis is a healthcare technology and innovation leader in the development of robotic cardiology instrument navigation systems designed to enhance the treatment of arrhythmias and coronary disease, as well as information management solutions for the interventional lab. Over 100 issued patents support the Stereotaxis platform, which helps physicians around the world provide unsurpassed patient care with robotic precision and safety, improved lab efficiency and productivity, and enhanced integration of procedural information. Stereotaxis' core Epoch™ Solution includes the Niobe® ES remote magnetic navigation system, the Odyssey® portfolio of lab optimization, networking and patient information management systems and the Vdrive™ robotic navigation system and consumables.
The core components of Stereotaxis systems have received regulatory clearance in the U.S., European Union, Canada, China, Japan and elsewhere. The V-Sono™ ICE catheter manipulator and V-Loop™ variable loop catheter manipulator have received U.S. clearance, and the V-CAS™ catheter advancement system has been submitted for review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. For more information, please visit www.stereotaxis.com.
This press release includes statements that may constitute "forward-looking" statements, usually containing the words "believe," "estimate," "project," "expect" or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Factors that would cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, the Company's ability to raise additional capital on a timely basis and on terms that are acceptable, its ability to continue to manage expenses and cash burn rate at sustainable levels, its ability to continue to work with lenders to extend, repay or refinance indebtedness on acceptable terms, continued acceptance of the Company's products in the marketplace, the effect of global economic conditions on the ability and willingness of customers to purchase its systems and the timing of such purchases, competitive factors, changes resulting from the recently enacted healthcare reform in the U.S., including changes in government reimbursement procedures, dependence upon third-party vendors, timing of regulatory approvals, and other risks discussed in the Company's periodic and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. By making these forward-looking statements, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release. There can be no assurance that the Company will recognize revenue related to its purchase orders and other commitments in any particular period or at all because some of these purchase orders and other commitments are subject to contingencies that are outside of the Company's control. In addition, these orders and commitments may be revised, modified, delayed or canceled, either by their express terms, as a result of negotiations, or by overall project changes or delays.