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The top orthopedic device news out of AAOS 2023

Stryker’s next-gen Mako total robotic knee surgery system and more AI integration for Zimmer Biomet’s ZBEdge surgical platform topped the news at this year’s AAOS 2023.

The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons 2023 annual meeting drew top medical and medtech talent to Las Vegas from March 7–11.

Here is a roundup of major news coming out of the show:

Stryker launches Mako Total Knee 2.0 surgical robotics platform The goal of Stryker’s Mako robotic-arm assisted surgery is to provide more predictable outcomes. [Image courtesy of Stryker]Stryker unveiled Mako Total Knee 2.0 at AAOS 2023. Informed by more than 500,000 procedures, Stryker said it designed the next-gen version of the robotic knee surgery system to provide an elevated user experience with customizable workflows and other key features. New features include a digital tensioner for assessing knee stability intraoperatively during total knee arthroplasty — without the need f…

Smith+Nephew data backs its patient-specific knee surgery tools

Visionaire patient-specific instrumentation [Image courtesy of Smith+Nephew]Smith+Nephew (LSE:SN, NYSE:SNN) has published a systemic literature review that backs its Visionaire patient-specific instrumentation for knee surgeries.

The research was published online by the Archives of Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery. It included a meta-analysis of 25 relevant studies that compared Visionaire-enabled total knee arthroplasty (TKA) with conventional instrumentation-enabled TKA.

The analysis demonstrated improvements in alignment accuracy, efficiency in surgical procedures, and reduction in length of hospital stay in comparison with conventional instrumentation, London-based Smith+Nephew said in a news release posted March 6. (The announcement comes the same week as AAOS’s 2023 annual meeting in Las Vegas.)

People who received a total knee arthroplasty with Visionaire experienced benefits including:

A 40% reduction in the odds of an outlier in the mechan…

Medtech jobs: The world’s largest medical device companies are hiring

Medical device companies are trying to fill thousand of medtech jobs. [Photo by ijeab – stock.adobe.com]

The world’s largest medical device companies are still hiring for medtech jobs despite layoffs in tech and other industries.

Medtech developers — and medtech jobs — are resilient, with the industry’s COVID-19 pandemic performance only bolstering its recession-proof reputation.

That’s not to say there haven’t been job cuts in medtech, led by thousands of layoffs at Philips as it struggles with a massive recall of deadly respiratory devices. But most medical device manufacturers are still hiring, and in some cases they can’t attract enough candidates to fill every vacancy in a tight labor market.

Stryker, for example, grew to approximately 51,000 employees as of the end of 2022, increasing its headcount by nearly 11 percent last year. Boston Scientific reported nearl…

Smith+Nephew projects at least 5% growth next year after ’12-point’ transformation

Smith+Nephew (NYSE:SNN) shares ticked up slightly on fourth-quarter financial results that include projections for growth in 2023.

Shares of SNN rose 0.5% at $29.55 apiece in early-morning trading today. MassDevice’s MedTech 100 Index — which includes stocks of the world’s largest medical device companies — rose 8.7%.

The London-based orthopedic implant maker posted revenues of $1.37 billion for the quarter. That marks a 1.4% increase from the same three-month period in 2021. Full-year revenues grew 0.1% to $5.22 billion. The company recorded a 2022 operating profit of $450 million.

Smith+Nephew said in a news release that it spent 2022 “transforming” itself with a 12-point plan. It aims to improve execution and drive strategy for growth. That includes fixing orthopedics, improving productivity and accelerating wound management and sports medicine growth.

The company reported “good early progress” that includes …

Smith+Nephew names new company chair

Rupert Soames. [Image courtesy of Smith+Nephew]Smith+Nephew (NYSE:SNN) announced that it appointed Rupert Soames OBE to succeed Roberto Quarta as chair of the company.

Quarta reached the end of his tenure and intends to retire as chair and non-executive director this year.

London-based Smith+Nephew plans to appoint Soames as an independent non-executive director at its annual meeting on April 26. His appointment remains subject to shareholder approval and should take effect on Sept. 15, 2023. Quarta agreed to continue as chair to ensure a smooth transition. He also intends to put himself up for re-election as a non-executive director on April 26 on this basis.

Soames joins Smith+Nephew after serving as CEO of Serco Group, an outsourced services provider. He held that role between 2014 and 2022.

Prior to Serco, Soams held the corner office at Aggreko from 2003 to 2014. He served as non-executive independent director at both DS Smith and Electrocompone…

Smith+Nephew LEAF patient monitor wins innovative tech nod

The LEAF patient monitoring system. [Image courtesy of Smith+Nephew]

Smith+Nephew (NYSE:SNN) announced today that its LEAF patient monitoring system received an Innovative Technology designation from Vizient.

Vizient awards Innovative Technology designations to previously contracted products. The award signals to healthcare providers the impact of these innovations.

Get the full story at our sister site, MassDevice.

Smith+Nephew LEAF patient monitor wins innovative tech nod

The LEAF patient monitoring system. [Image courtesy of Smith+Nephew]Smith+Nephew (NYSE:SNN) announced today that its LEAF patient monitoring system received an Innovative Technology designation from Vizient.

Vizient awards Innovative Technology designations to previously contracted products. The award signals to healthcare providers the impact of these innovations.

London-based Smith+Nephew exhibited the LEAF system at the Vizient Innovative Technology Exchange last year.

Smith+Nephew’s LEAF offers visual alerts in the patient room and at the nurse’s station. It tells users who needs to be turned and when. Its Integrated Positioning Technology precisely measures the effectiveness of patient turning. This includes turn frequency, turn angle and tissue recovery time.

The wearable, wireless system helps improve adherence to individualized turn protocols up to 98%. It demonstrated the ability to reduce the chance of developing hospital-acquir…

Smith+Nephew introduces a reverse hybrid construct for total knee arthroplasty

Smith+Nephew (NYSE:SNN) announced this week that it launched its Journey II Rox total knee solution, a reverse hybrid construct for total knee arthroplasty.

The company designed the orthopedic device to give surgeons the clinical advantage of advanced bearing material and anatomic design combined with the efficiency and potential long-term tibia fixation of cementless knees.

Journey II Rox has several combinations of S+N’s high-performance technologies in one construct, including the characteristics kinematics of Journey II TKA, the clinical history of Conceloc Advanced Porous Titanium and the wear resistance of Oxinium Oxidized Zirconium. The total knee system is compatible with Smith+Nephew’s Cori surgical robotic system.

“The reverse hybrid combination provides my patients with a powerful collection of knee arthroplasty technologies. The kinematic functionality of Journey II, the biocompatibility and longevity benefits of an oxidized zirco…

Smith+Nephew announces first clinical use of Legion revision knee handheld robotics tech

The Cori surgical robot system for knee replacement. [Image from Smith+Nephew]Smith+Nephew (NYSE:SNN) today announced the first cases for revision knee replacement using the Cori surgical robot system.

Dr. Thorsten Seyler of Duke University performed the first cases on Aug. 17, 2022. Seyler used the combination of Smith+Nephew’s handheld Cori robotic technology with the Legion revision knee system. The system uses image-free smart mapping to eliminate the need for pre-operative CT/MRI scans. It also eliminates the potential for image distortion due to in situ components from the primary procedure.

London-based Smith+Nephew said in a news release that surgeons can build patient-specific 3D models of the joint. They can also register anatomy and bony defects after implant extraction. With the system, surgeons can intra-operatively gap balance in real-time, and accurately precision mill for final placement of components.

Smith+Nephew said it is the first…

Smith+Nephew uses simulation technologies to boost its medical education

Smith+Nephew (NYSE:SNN) announced today that it is expanding its medical education curriculum with advanced simulation technologies.

London-based Smith+Nephew offers new training through its academy center of excellence. Professionals can access orthopedic, robotics and sports medicine procedural skills-training using virtual and augmented reality, haptics and 3D interactive gaming.

Stephen Mitchell is a consultant trauma & orthopedic surgeon at University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust. He recently led a hip fracture management course for Smith+Nephew using VR.

“There is a huge opportunity with virtual reality for future training applications to drive both an accelerated learning process and distance training,” Mitchell said in a news release. “It lends itself perfectly to the 2D/3D nature of trauma, arthroscopy and arthroplasty procedures.”

A popular method for medical education

The British medtech giant’s move sugg…

Smith+Nephew announces positive data in Regeneten bioinductive implant study

The Regeneten bioinductive implant [Image from Smith+Nephew]Smith+Nephew (NYSE:SNN) announced today that data supports the use of its Regeneten bioinductive implant in rotator cuff repair.

London-based Smith+Nephew designed Regeneten to provide a patient-centric treatment supporting the body’s natural healing process. The aim is for the implant to change the course of tear progression, aid return to normal activity and reduce re-tears compared to conventional surgery.

Interim analysis from a randomized controlled trial showed a significant reduction in the re-tear rate of full-thickness rotator cuff repairs when using Regeneten, according to a news release. Re-tear rates of patients with medium to large full-thickness tears were measured following either an arthroscopic supraspinatus transosseous equivalent (TOE) repair alone, or the same TOE repair with the addition of a Regeneten implant.

Dr. Miguel Angel Ruiz-Ibán of Hospital Universitario Ramon Y …

16 surgical robotics companies you need to know

Intuitive remains the dominant surgical robotics company, but corporations ranging from Medtronic to Vicarious Surgical look to compete. The Da Vinci Xi robotic surgery system. Intuitive continues to dominate the space. [Image courtesy of Intuitive]Robotic-assisted surgery remains one of the hottest spaces in medtech. Intuitive, which pioneered the field in the 1990s and early 2000s, continues to innovate. At the same time, a host of other companies are looking to compete.

Companies making headlines in the robotic surgery space over the past year include:

Company Robotic system(s) Intuitive Surgical Da Vinci Xi, Da Vinci X, Da Vinci SP, Ion Medtronic Hugo Johnson & Johnson Monarch, Velys, Ottava Stryker Mako Siemens Healthineers’ Corindus CorPath GRX Vicarious Surgical Beta 2 Titan Medical Enos Asensus Surgical Senhance Moon Surgical Maestro Momentus Surgical Anovo Virtual Incision MIRA Stereotaxis Genesis RMN, Vdrive, Niobe Monteris …