First POSE procedure using USGI's Incisionless Operating Platform performed at Ospedale All'Angelo

USGI Medical, Inc. announced that a prominent surgeon in Italy performed the first POSE procedure (Primary Obesity Surgery, Endolumenal) on patients for weight loss. The surgeon used USGI's Incisionless Operating Platform™ (IOP), to perform the scar-free procedure designed to help patients reduce hunger and feel full sooner.

Doctor Paolo Bernante performed Italy's first POSE procedures on patients at Ospedale All'Angelo in Mestre, Venice, the leading provider of bariatric surgery in the region, on February 21. The patients who underwent the procedure returned to work or normal activities within 2-3 days with no complications.

"Obesity is a global epidemic as so many people struggle to combat their ever-present hunger with diet and exercise. Therefore I'm excited to be offering this new discreet procedure to help my patients feel full and eat less" said Dr. Bernante. "It offers many advantages over traditional bariatric surgery performed through the abdomen. Being incisionless the procedure should result in less pain, shorter hospitalization, less risk of infection and no visible scars. My first patients were back to their everyday lives within just a few days, without any bandages or signs of surgery."

The POSE procedures were performed at the Ospedale All'Angelo, Mestre, Venice, a state of the art facility with a strong record of providing leading edge medical technology and the highest level of patient care.

To perform POSE, surgeons pass the USGI IOP down a patient's throat, and use tools to grasp tissue and deploy the company's specially-designed Expandable Tissue Anchors to create multiple tissue folds in the stomach. An endoscope provides visualization.

In the European Union's 27 member states, approximately 60% of adults and 20% of school-age children are overweight or obese. Several serious diseases and conditions are commonly associated with obesity, including Type II diabetes, hypertension, sleep apnea and cardiovascular disease. Surgical treatment of obesity has increased significantly in recent years; however, most obese or overweight people refuse traditional obesity surgery because they are concerned about the risk of death and complications. Incision free procedures offer a desirable alternative.