A Look to the Future: Observations from the Top 10 Reports

As I reviewed this year’s top company reports, I saw mentions of the familiar products commonly associated with the orthopedic industry—implants for hips, knees, and spine, as well as bracing solutions and instrumentation. These products offered mostly modest gains, demonstrating consistent, low single-digit growth for the top firms. They provide the company with financial stability; sales of these technologies “keep the lights on.”

My focus, however, was not on these segments. Rather, what most piqued my interest were the selection of innovations that have only recently seen market launch (i.e., within the last few years). The devices in this realm will enable the type of growth these organizations (and their shareholders) seek. Also, they often enable a greater level of care for patients, leveraging the latest technologies such as artificial intelligence, additive manufacturing, robotics, advanced imaging, and other developments impacting healthcare.

For example, within Stryker’s report, the Tritanium TL Curved Posterior Lumbar Cage is featured. Additively manufactured spinal implants have been growing in terms of adoption by companies leveraging the fabrication technology for their creation. Ultimately, they could even lead to spinal implants customized for each individual patient. For now though, the manufacturing protocol helps create a surface favorable for osseointegration.

Another emerging technology that has been a major focal point for many device makers in the top 10 list is robotic surgical systems. This type of solution originated with the development and launch of Intuitive Surgical’s da Vinci System back in 2000, which incidentally does not have applications for the orthopedic space. Recognizing that void, a bevy of alternatives have since emerged, most of which were birthed at a startup and then acquired by one of the larger players.

Smith & Nephew—which specifically mentions developing robotics, imaging, and augmented reality as part of its growth plan—gained the NAVIO Surgical System in its purchase of Blue Belt Technologies in 2015. Demand for the portable offering helped contribute to the firm’s gains in 2018.

Medtronic made waves in M&A headlines with its anticipated buy of Mazor Robotics, which developed the Mazor X system. Medtronic had previously invested in the Israeli-based firm, as outlined in last year’s report, but made the move to bring the entity in-house last year. “Over the past two years, it’s become clear to us that enabling technology like this is the future,” explained Geoff Martha, president of Medtronic’s Restorative Therapies Group, in a Bloomberg piece.

Clearly, he’s not alone in that assessment.

Globus Medical and Johnson & Johnson’s DePuy Synthes both seemed to have similar favorable attitudes toward the robotic innovations garnering attention within orthopedics. Perhaps inspired by its efforts with Verily on the formation of Verb Surgical, an entity that could challenge the market dominance of the da Vinci system, DePuy absorbed Orthotaxy—an organization developing a robotic surgical solution—in 2018. Its anticipated product launch is set for 2020 and the company claims it does not resemble other robotic products on the market.

Globus, on the other hand, is already marketing its offering, which presents its own differentiator. At launch, the ExcelsiusGPS was the only system to combine surgical navigation and robotic guidance for spinal procedures. While the first case using the product was performed in late 2017, the firm grew its footprint last year.

Other technologies are being introduced that represent new innovations for orthopedics. Zimmer Biomet partnered with Apple to better understand why some patients had more positive recovery experiences following knee and hip replacement surgeries. The mymobility app was implemented as part of a clinical study, guiding patients through the surgery to attempt to improve recovery. The Apple Watch was also incorporated to track patient movement and heart rate while sharing that information with doctors who could then get a better idea of progress made.

Some firms have fully embraced the growth technology areas and left the more traditional orthopedic solutions behind. Wright Medical is seeing the fruits of its labor in transitioning to a company exclusively focused on the extremities and biologics segments. The move came out of its merger with Tornier in 2015 and has resulted in strong, double-digit gains year-over-year since.

I hope you’ll take a few moments to review the enclosed top company reports for 2019. As you do, I’m certain you’ll gain key insights into the happenings at these leading firms and perhaps reflect on your own company’s actions in comparison. Are you one of those leading the crowd in the development of new technologies or are you playing catch-up?  

Sean Fenske, Editor-in-Chief
[email protected]