Company: ISRG
Filing Date: 2025-01-31
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001035267-25-000017
Chunk: 185

Company: INTUITIVE SURGICAL INC
Filing Date: 2025-01-31
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
Chunk 185
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Table of Contents

ITEM 1A.     RISK FACTORS

You should consider each of the following risk factors, which could materially affect our business, financial condition, or future results of operations. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently deem to be immaterial also may materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, or future results of operations. In addition, the global economic environment may amplify many of these risks.

RISKS RELATING TO OUR BUSINESS

OUR MARKETS ARE HIGHLY COMPETITIVE, AND CUSTOMERS MAY CHOOSE TO PURCHASE OUR COMPETITORS’ PRODUCTS OR SERVICES OR MAY NOT ACCEPT ROBOTIC-ASSISTED MEDICAL PROCEDURES, WHICH COULD RESULT IN REDUCED REVENUE AND LOSS OF MARKET SHARE.

Robotic-assisted surgery with a da Vinci surgical system or robotic-assisted bronchoscopy with an Ion endoluminal system are technologies that compete with established and emerging treatment options in reconstructive medical procedures or disease management. These competitive treatment options include open surgery, conventional MIS, drug therapies, radiation treatment, and other emerging diagnostic and interventional surgical approaches. Some of these procedures are widely accepted in the medical community and, in many cases, have a long history of use. Technological advances could make such treatment options more effective or less expensive than using our products, which could render our products obsolete or unmarketable. Also, studies could be published that show that other treatment options are more beneficial and/or cost-effective than robotic-assisted medical procedures. We cannot be certain that physicians, or their patients, will choose our products to replace or supplement established treatment options or that our products will continue to be competitive with current or future technologies. For example, in 2023, certain drugs initially approved for use in diabetes patients gained market acceptance for use in weight loss treatment following FDA approvals for weight loss indications. The availability and effectiveness of weight loss drugs have reduced the number of bariatric procedures performed, including those bariatric procedures performed using our da Vinci surgical system, as some patients reconsider the surgical treatment option. At this time, it is difficult to predict the long-term market impact of these drugs, including their long-term efficacy as weight loss drugs and potential drawbacks.

Additionally, we currently face, or anticipate facing, competition from companies with products used in open or MIS surgeries, including laparoscopy and alternative multi-port, single-port, or endoluminal systems. We also compete with companies providing other therapeutic approaches for addressing target clinical