RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. – Officials at TransEnterix introduced the company’s revolutionary single-port, multi-channel laparoscopic SPIDER® System at the Society of Laparoendoscopic Surgeons’ annual meeting last week.

The system – which allows surgeons to perform minimally invasive abdominal procedures entirely through the umbilicus, leaving no visible scar – was recognized as an “Innovation of the Year” by SLS. TransEnterix was one of only three recipients of this prestigious designation. The company anticipates marketing the platform in early 2010.

Potential benefits of single-port technology include faster full recovery, less post-surgical pain, fewer complications and an improved aesthetic result.

“It was gratifying to see a standing-room-only crowd at SLS turn out to hear TransEnterix’s presentation about the SPIDER System and its unique design,” said Todd M. Pope, president and CEO. “It was clear to us that medical experts in the field are excited about this game-changing technology that could improve the effectiveness of patient care.”

SPIDER is the first single-port platform that offers surgeons true triangulation and other critical techniques common in multi-port laparoscopy. Conventional laparoscopic surgery typically involves three to five incisions, which leave small scars in a patient’s abdomen. Surgeons in the United States perform more than 2.5 million laparoscopic procedures each year.

TransEnterix partners with the world’s leading physicians to rapidly develop pioneering technologies that revolutionize minimally invasive surgery. The company relies on rapid prototyping, intense pre-clinical labs and hands-on collaboration with expert surgeons to accelerate learning and bring a device to market more quickly. TransEnterix has secured $21 million in Series A venture capital funding.