Incorporating VERASENSE™ in the Triathlon® Knee System
How does VERASENSE work?
VERASENSE is a disposable instrument that measures tibial coronal alignment and ensures soft-tissue balance during primary and revision total knee arthroplasty. It includes wireless communication, center of load indicators, VERASENSE calibration indicators, load value, and kinetic tracking.
For nearly a decade, OrthoSensor’s VERASENSE sensor technology has been used with Stryker’s Triathlon knee system in total knee arthroplasty. Per the Stryker website, the Triathlon total knee system is a “primary total knee replacement system designed to work with the body.”
According to OrthoSensor, a surgeon using the VERASENSE sensor does not have to change his or her workflow in the operating room. The surgeon performs the total knee arthroplasty as they usually would. Once the surgeon “feels the knee is balanced,”’ the operating room staff activates the sensor. The surgeon “then places VERASENSE into the tibial tray and examines the mediolateral loading values and contact point rotation….” The sensor delivers real-time data to an intra-operative monitor. According to its brochure, this enables the surgeon to “perform real-time, quantified soft tissue balancing and implant positioning.”
Stryker is not OrthoSensor’s only partnership. OrthoSensor also partnered with Smith & Nephew and Zimmer Biomet. In addition to Triathlon, VERASENSE is compatible for use with Smith & Nephew Legion® and Journey II® and Zimmer Biomet Persona®, NexGen®, and Vanguard®.
The Mako SmartRobotics™ Platform
The Triathlon Total Knee can be used with the Mako system for Mako Total Knee. Mako’s robotic-arm assisted reconstructive service line includes Mako Total Knee, Mako Partial Knee, and Mako Total Hip.
The Stryker website indicates that Mako SmartRobotics combines the following three components into one platform: 3D CT-based planning, AccuStop haptic technology, and data analytics. Initially, the surgeon creates the patient’s surgical plan utilizing a CT scan that creates a 3D image of the patient’s anatomy. Then, during robotic-arm assisted surgery, the surgeon uses Mako AccuStop haptic technology to guide them to “cut what’s planned precisely for each patient.” For the Mako Total Knee application, this can result in “less soft tissue damage and greater bone preservation as compared to manual surgery.”
The platform also provides data analytics to help surgeons see trends to make informed decisions. The Mako SmartRobotics program includes two data platforms, the Hospital/ASC Reported Outcomes dashboard and RecoveryCOACH. RecoveryCOACH is the “patient engagement and patient reported outcomes collection portal and app.”
Integration may be in the near future for the technology. Quoting from the Wells Fargo research note, “Our diligence suggests that SYK [Stryker] will first look to integrate the technology within its MAKO SmartRobotics platform in order to get data-drive feedback on tissue tension between bone gaps to complement the 1mm precision of a robotic cut in order to drive better outcomes. It would not surprise us if this feature is made available in the next several quarters as the company has been working on it for the past year.”
