Joint and spine surgical product manufacturer Medacta USA announced the successful completion of the first two spinal surgeries in the United States using its MySpine Patient-Matched Technology. MySpine uses 3D reconstruction and rapid 3D printing technology to create patient-specific guides used in extremely complicated spinal deformation reparative surgeries.
MySpine is intended to increase efficiency and accuracy as well as help improve the chances of positive outcomes of spinal procedures. The 3D printed guides help identify the optimal screw trajectories and entry points into the specific vertebrae that are being operated on. This can greatly reduce the time spent operating and help prevent doctor error.
The patient-matched technology used for MySpine has already been successfully implemented in 15,000 knee surgeries using Medacta’s MyKnee line of 3D printed surgical guides. A study in the Journal of Spinal Disorders and Techniques detailed the clinical experience of MySpine that tracked surgical results from four patients living with severe scoliosis that had the surgical templates 3D printed using the MySpine pre-surgical process. The results were stunning, with no screw-related complaints being reported by patients. Of the 76 implanted pedicle screws, 84% of them were completely intrapedicular and 96.1% showed less than a 2mm cortical breach.
“The pedicle screw is one of the spine surgeon’s most commonly used tools, but its widespread prevalence doesn’t make its proper placement any less challenging. The practice remains technically demanding, with a very small margin of error,” said Medacta International Executive Vice President Francesco Siccardi. “MySpine utilizes Medacta’s innovative Patient-Matched Technology to create pedicle screw placement guides unique to the patient, giving surgeons added confidence and support that can increase procedural efficiencies, improve outcomes, and contribute to health care sustainability.”
MySpine has been cleared by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration – FDA – since May and the Spine Institute of Idaho’s Samuel S. Jorgenson, M.D. and Richard Manos, M.D performed the first two surgeries. The MySpine is the first tailor-made patient-specific guides for the spine made available in the US. The device is created using proprietary CT scanning algorithms and advanced medical 3D printing technology.
Recently well-respected trade publication ‘Orthopedics This Week’ singled out MySpine as one of the best new technologies for spine care in 2014. The award is given to products that show innovative spine surgery uses by a panel of surgeons and venture capitalists who work closely with the spinal health care technology market.
