Eighteen years ago, orthopedic surgeon William Bargar, M.D. made history when he performed the first-ever hip replacement using a robotic device he developed called ROBODOC®, which improves precision in joint replacement surgery.

On May 26, 2010, Dr. Bargar made history again as he performed joint replacement surgery with the new-generation ROBODOC® Surgical System, recently approved by the FDA for total hip arthroplasty procedures.

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Millennium Research Group (MRG), finds that 25% of the 150 orthopedic surgeons surveyed in its newest Physician Forum publication plan to reduce their usage of metal-on-metal hip implants over the next twelve months.  

Metal-on-metal hip implants have been the subject of close media scrutiny in recent months due to reports of metal debris and soft-tissue damage resulting in revision surgeries in some patients.

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In a discovery that seems counterintuitive, a study appearing in the May 21st Journal of Biological Chemistry has found that tendons in high-stress and strain areas, like the Achilles tendon, actually repair themselves less frequently than low-stress tendons. This study sheds some light on the increased susceptibility of certain tendons to injury during aging. Tendons, composed of collagen and other proteins, serve to connect muscle to bone and thus are vital for movement.

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Scientists at the University of Southampton believe that they can use a patient’s own skeletal stem cells in the hip joint during bone grafting to encourage more successful regrowth and repair. This new discovery could replace the need for outside bone donors. The grafting technique referred to  is the one used to repair the thigh bone and joint during replacement (known as ‘revision’) hip replacement therapy.

In a two-year study, funded by the Medical Research Council (MRC), collaborative study between the University of Southampton and The University of Nottingham, researchers plan to test their theory by taking adult stem cells from bone marrow in combination with an impaction process and polymer scaffolds.

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The Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Devices advisory committee has unanimously recommended the FDA approval of DePuy Orthopaedics’ Pinnacle CoMplete Acetabular Hip System, the first ceramic-on-metal hip bearing to be considered for approval in the US. The recommendation was based on the clinical study comparing Pinnacle CoMplete System to a commonly used DePuy metal-on-metal implant on the efficacy and safety. Laboratory testing on the Pinnacle CoMplete System showed a greater than 90% reduction in wear compared to the metal-on-metal system under normal gait conditions and a more than 80% reduction in wear under adverse conditions.

The Stone Clinic in San Francisco reported it implanted the first commercially available meniscus templates in California this past week, opening up a whole new field of meniscus reconstruction. The implant permits segmental rebuilding of portions damaged or missing meniscus cartilage, the fibrous shock absorber of the knee. To date doctors have only been able to remove, suture repair or replace the whole meniscus with cadaver tissue. There was no method of rebuilding or regenerating missing and torn segments.

Radius Health has announced the completion of enrollment of patients for the Phase II clinical trial of BA058, the company’s bone anatomic candidate for osteoporosis. The trial will study the capability of BA058 to build new bones in postmenopausal women. The clinical trial will study 244 postmenopausal women with osteoporosis who are otherwise healthy.

DePuy Spine Inc., a Johnson & Johnson company, has launched the VERTIGRAFT® VG1® CERVICAL ALLOGRAFT, an innovative bio-implant for anterior cervical fusion surgery designed to align with the spinal anatomy for maximum stability and freeze-dried for easy storage. VG1 CERVICAL’s trapezoidal design matches the anatomy of the cervical spine and its open central chamber allows surgeons to add graft material of their choice.

Pioneer Surgical Technology Inc. has announced the successful human implantation of its next generation cervical total disc replacement (TDR), NuNec Cervical Arthroplasty Device. The surgeries were conducted on patients with degenerative disc disease (DDD) otherwise indicated for standard fusion surgery. Unlike many cervical disc devices, the radiolucency of the PEEK material in NuNec causes no artifact in MRI or CT imaging and is easiest to implant.

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