This article is from in the January 2008 issue of DOTmed Business News. A list of registered users that provide sales & service can be found at the end.

The high-end surgical microscopes available incorporate a wide range of advanced features and accessories including surgical microscope cameras, monitors, recorders and printers. There are also microscopes with speed recognition that is a voice activated control system in the microscope that helps control various functions like zoom, focus and X-ray movements. The days of purchasing surgical microscopes based simply on magnification, illumination and focusing are long gone. Today, when purchasing a new surgical microscope, which can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, balance, stability, positioning, viewing, Image Guided Surgery (IGS) and documentation capabilities must be considered.
Manufacturers have improved apochromatically-corrected color, which provides the surgeon a truer color of structures that could not be done before. Floor stands are improved giving smoother, easier movement, using electromagnetic release or easy positioning, and assisting microscopes have improved as well, with some microscopes providing the assistant stereoscopic imaging.

Surgeons around the world have been performing intricate surgeries with surgical microscopes for over half a century. Pioneered by Carl Zeiss , a leading German company in optical and opto-electronic industry, microscopic surgery was first performed on a human in 1957.

There is, of course, a robust market for new O/R surgical microscopes. However, there is also a sizeable market for used and refurbished units that can sell for as much as 20 to 60 percent less than a new one.
Nicholas Toal, corporate account executive, Seiler Instruments and Manufacturing, St. Louis, MO said the company's Seiler Precision Microscopes division sells new microscopes and sometimes offers "demo" specials on equipment that has been in the field for a long period of time or when upgrades have been made to Seiler's microscopic units. According to Toal, Seiler is the largest microscope company in the world that only sells through dealers and distributors, "unlike the major players in the microscope game that sell their products directly."




"When it comes to market share," Toal says, "Seiler offers microscopes in several areas in the medical and dental market, so it is hard to gauge exactly where we are market wise. I guess it's safe to say, we are at the top." Seiler sells colposcopes for gynecology, women's health, proctology, ear nose and throat (ENT), dental, ophthalmology, surgical and compound microscopes. They also sell medical and dental loupes with an available LED loupe light (type of magnification device) and many other accessories.

Michael Launius, operations manager, MedNet Locator Inc., Memphis, TN says his company sells refurbished microscopes with a two to three year warranty (depending on how far the client is from Memphis). Launius reports that MedNet sells around 50 or more microscope systems a year. "We specialize in the field of otolaryngology and sell to hospitals and surgery centers for this specialty as well as others," he says. He explains that the Zeiss OPMI-1, both bulb illuminated and fiberoptic, is the most popular microscope for otolaryngology, as well as the Zeiss OPMI MD S3 and Zeiss OPMI-IFC S21 surgical microscopes.
MedNet sells Zeiss, Storz-Urban and Vasconcellos microscopes. Lauius says these systems have many interchangeable accessories and configurations for flexible usage in the operating room. Launius warned that when purchasing a new or used microscope, the buyer should know the company they are buying from.
"The company should not only know how to sell a system but also be able to sell it to you in good working condition," he says. "Beware of the word bargains on the Internet. You can spend a lot of time and money restoring a system to working condition and not have the support you need after the purchase - not to mention the condition it may arrive in after shipment."

Prescott's Inc., Monument, CO sells new and used microscopes, and President Mark Redner believes that the market is very strong for both smaller facilities that go with a refurbished microscope because of budget constraints. "On the other hand, larger hospitals and research facilities always want new, state-of-the-art equipment," says Redner. Prescott's obtains pre-owned microscopes from hospitals and/or clinics that have changed or expanded their microscope capabilities.
"We bring these units to our facility, where they are disassembled to basic components. These components along with additional parts and accessories are used to remake an operating microscope," Redner says. He also noted the company sells a new Prescott's Omni-Flex - a dedicated cataract microscope that combines German optics with an American built floor-stand for a superior operating room system. "The optics designed and supplied by Haag/Streit feature the absolute latest in optical innovation with apochromatic lenses, and a red reflex enhancement system," says Redner. "And, we have engineered a specific support package for the optical unit that gives the physician the most ergonomically correct operating microscope available anywhere."




L & R Services of Miramir, FL mainly services microscopes, along with many other medical equipment systems. The company also sells some medical equipment, including microscopes. President Randy Lowers says that L & R doesn't sell new, but if he comes across a facility that is looking to replace a microscope that is in good working condition, he'll take the unit and sell it "as is". "If a scope is sold in working condition, there should be no problems," says Lowers. He thinks that the Zeiss and Leica microscopes are the most popular because "people know they keep up with today's market wants and needs and are competitive in pricing." Lowers thinks that the market for used microscopes is very low. "Many of the older scopes don't have the features of the new and are still selling for high prices. If a hospital or office spends $10K or more on a scope, they will get better warranties, more options and better support on the new product. These are key selling points for hospitals," he says.

Stefano Fumasoli, president, Rhynstar, Inc, Davie, FL sells and services new and refurbished microscopes in the Caribbean, Central and South America. He has factory-trained technicians that service the scopes on-site. "Many of the hospitals and clinics we sell to and service have limited budgets, and I've found that there is a substantial market for refurbished O/R microscopes," Fumasoli says.

When Rhynstar refurbishes a microscope, the technicians rebuild it, and will often exchange old pieces, like lenses, with brand new ones. Fumasoli cautions buyers to beware and know what they are buying. "It is vital to now the application/discipline that a microscope is being used for in order to configure it correctly," says Fumasoli. "Our company will not quote without knowing the application. The problem with buying 'as is' is you don't really know what you are getting."

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DOTmed Registered O/R Microscope Sales and Service Companies
Names in boldface are Premium Listings.

Domestic
Stefano Fumasoli, Rhynstar, Inc., FL
Randy Lowers, L & R Services, FL
DOTmed Certified
Michael Miller, NorthCoast Microsurgical, Inc., OH
Clinton Courson, Quest Medical Supply, Inc., FL
DOTmed 100
Bill Tinker, Tascosa Group, CA
DOTmed Certified
Charles Moore, CMoore Medical Sales & Service, GA
DOTmed 100
Mike Launius, MedNet Locator, Inc., TN
Kevin Blaser, Coast to Coast Medical, MA

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