WESTBOROUGH, Mass., Dec. 20, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Viking Systems, Inc. (OTCBB:VKNG) said today that its recently-released 3DHD Vision System was featured last Friday, December 17, in a live surgery demonstration at the 3D Laparoscopic Surgery Symposium held at The Minimal Access Therapy Training Unit (MATTU) at the University of Surrey in the United Kingdom. The Company also indicated that it has begun initial shipments of the product to its distributors.
Course director, Mr. Iain Jourdan, MA MB MChir FRCS, commented, "With the superior image the new Viking 3DHD Vision System delivers to surgeons performing complex minimally invasive procedures, I would expect 3D vision to become the standard for keyhole surgery in the very near future." Mr. Jourdan went on to say, "The live laparoscopic hysterectomy, viewed in the state of the art MATTU 3D theatre by the 50 surgeons attending the symposium was a success, and the Viking 3DHD system performed brilliantly."
The symposium exposed attendees to a mix of lectures on 3D technology in surgery; live 3D surgery; a perspective of past, present and anticipated future 3D surgical applications as well as an introduction to the latest advances in stereoscopic solutions. Jed Kennedy, President and CEO of Viking Systems said, "Viking is pleased to have supported this important symposium at the MATTU and we are confident that their research will lend further scientific evidence to the clinical benefits 3DHD vision brings to minimally invasive surgery."
The Viking Systems 3DHD Vision System was launched in October 2010 at the American College of Surgeons (ACS) annual congress in Washington, DC. The Company reported that since the new product launch at ACS, Viking has reached agreement with distribution partners both within and outside the United States, worked with the distributors on follow-up to early sales leads, demonstrated the product at various trade events and clinical congresses, completed the CE certification process and worked with suppliers on finalizing their production and delivery times of "first production" parts. Jed Kennedy said, "We have been extremely busy since ACS gearing up for year-end production and shipments of our new 3DHD system. The response from clinicians and distributors continues to be very positive. We are pleased to have now started shipments of demonstration systems to our distributors. Having these demonstration systems is essential so they can begin the selling process early in 2011." The Company also reported that it has entered into a distribution agreement with Sh. Shevook-Kol Millenium Ltd to distribute the Company's 3DHD vision system in Israel.
The Company reported that initial shipments to distributors for demonstration and end customer systems began on December 17, 2010.
About Viking Systems, Inc.
Viking Systems, Inc. (OTCBB:VKNG) is a leading worldwide developer, manufacturer and marketer of 2D and 3D visualization solutions for complex minimally invasive surgery. The Company partners with medical device companies and healthcare facilities to provide surgeons with proprietary visualization systems enabling minimally invasive surgical procedures, which reduce patient trauma and recovery time. For more information visit the Company's website at: www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/ctr%3Fd=202095%26l=6%26a=www.vikingsystems.com%26u=http%253A%252F%252Fus.lrd.yahoo.com%252F_ylt%253DAtXCWl64W1lW5J0JSgjxdtr8ba9_%253B_ylu%253DX3oDMTE2MWg3czMwBHBvcwMzBHNlYwNuZXdzYXJ0Ym9keQRzbGsDd3d3dmlraW5nc3lz%252FSIG%253D14ilks1va%252F%252A%252Ahttp%25253A%252Fwww.globenewswire.com%252Fnewsroom%252Fctr%25253Fd%253D180486%252526amp%253Bl%253D6%252526amp%253Ba%253Dwww.vikingsystems.com%252526amp%253Bu%253Dhttp%2525253A%2525252F%2525252Fwww.vikingsystems.com" target="_top" rel="nofollow">www.vikingsystems.com
This press release contains forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are estimates reflecting the best judgment of our management and involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those suggested by the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements should, therefore, be considered in light of various important factors as described in our annual report on Form 10-K under the heading "Risk Factors" as updated from time to time by our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Statements concerning forecasts, revenue growth, procedure growth, future financial results, and statements using words such as "estimate", "project", "plan", "intend", "expect", "anticipate", "believe" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or release any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.