It's hard to keep track of the number of new Da Vinci S systems Intuitive Surgical is selling, in large part because lots of newspaper and PR editors seem to think the S is a typo -- generally, you can guess that any ISRG robot purchased for more than $1.3 million this year is an S type, but unless they specify I can't be certain.
Thankfully, owning these robots is usually a competitive advantage for hospitals, and they like to brag about it. I've included links where they were available, but I pulled a lot of these articles from non-free web sources. I think these quotes and news items call attention to the demand for ISRG products, and the advantages of robotic surgery:
"Robert Carey, a urologist and robotic surgery expert at the University of Miami, is joining a local practice in part to use the newly upgraded robotic system, considered the most advanced on the market" -- Sarasota Memorial's newly purchased Da Vinci S, March 21.
"Between the demand and opportunity for heart surgery and lung surgery and what (the urologists) can do with prostate surgery, we had a backlog of cases waiting for the robot," Dr. J. Michael Smith said about Cincinnatti Good Samaritan purchasing the S as their second robot, on March 17.
Evanston Northwestern Healthcare got a da Vinci S as their first robot -- “My preference in the pelvic area and the prostate is to use the robot, because the area is a very small working area,
