Revenue during the quarter dropped 4.23 percent to $5.22 million from $5.46 million in the previous year period. Gross margin for the quarter expanded 163 basis points over the previous year period to 54.43 percent. Operating margin for the quarter stood at negative 29.74 percent as compared to a negative 26.44 percent for the previous year period.

Operating loss for the quarter was $1.55 million, compared with an operating loss of $1.44 million in the previous year period.

“The modest oximetry growth we’re reporting for the first quarter was both disappointing and below our expectations,” said Thomas M. Patton, President and Chief Executive Officer of CASMED. “However, we are quite pleased to announce our completed expansion and upgrade of our U.S. field sales force. We believe the rebuilding of our sales force was the principal reason for the slow-down in net productivity. We made the decision last year to invest in our sales organization to capitalize on our best-in-class FORE-SIGHT product in a market we estimate will ultimately reach $800 million in the U.S. alone. We entered the quarter with just five tenured sales reps and six newly hired reps but have since hired an additional six reps for a total of 17 staffed territories. Given the expanded talent and scope of these reps, we fully anticipate productivity gains as tenure matures. FORE-SIGHT and its superior clinical performance continue to be very well received by the industry, as evidenced by a standing-room-only crowd at our symposium at the recent Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists annual meeting and the number of sales leads we received.