ODT’s Most-Read Stories This Week—April 27

Treatment firsts dominated ODT website traffic this past week.

Hyalex Orthopedics, Surgical Theater, and Zimmer Biomet each scored high in pageviews with news of their respective technological premieres. Hyalex Orthopedics led the way with the first successful Hyalex knee implantation procedures in its first-in-human trials of the Hyalex knee cartilage system. Hyalex cartilage replicates hyaline cartilage’s structure and function, offering immediate knee surface restoration by mimicking the strong, slippery properties of native cartilage. The Hyalex knee implant, according to the company, is a potentially disruptive treatment approach for knee cartilage repair compared to traditional orthopedic materials.

OrthoIndy ran a high click count by sharing details of its debut procedure using SyncAR Spine platform, Surgical Theater’s eXperiential Reality (XR) technology. SyncAR Spine incorporates Microsoft HoloLens headsets for an enhanced visual experience, enabling surgeons to step into a patient’s diagnosis and walk inside an XR reconstruction of their anatomy. OrthoIndy is one of five sites in the world where this advanced approach is being used.  

Zimmer Biomet made the top five hit list by conducting the world’s first robotic-assisted shoulder replacement surgery using its ROSA Shoulder System. John W. Sperling, M.D., professor of Orthopedic Surgery at the Mayo Clinic, and a key contributor to the ROSA Shoulder development team, performed the surgery. Cleared by the FDA in February, ROSA Shoulder gives surgeons the flexibility to execute a total shoulder replacement using anatomic or reverse techniques; it is designed to support data-informed physician decision-making based on a patient’s unique anatomy. 

Other traffic drivers this week included Exactech, which added two patents to its IP portfolio protecting the Newton soft tissue balancing technology for total knee replacement surgery, and SAIL Fusion, which gained FDA clearance for its BowTie Sacroiliac Fusion System. Touted as the first SI fusion technology based on long-standing, validated joint fusion principles established by the AO foundation, BowTie is reportedly the sole commercially available device that incorporates both intra‑articular and transfixing components.

1. First-in-Human Hyalex Knee Cartilage Treatments Completed

2. OrthoIndy Performs First Procedure Using Surgical Theater’s XR Technology

3. Exactech Gains Patents for Soft Tissue Balancing Technology

4. FDA Clears SAIL Fusion’s BowTie Sacroiliac Fusion System

5. Zimmer Biomet Completes First Successful Surgery Using its ROSA Shoulder System