Yunnan Province, China - The Honghu Orthopedic Surgical Robot, developed independently by MicroPort NaviBot (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "MicroPort^® NaviBot^®"), a subsidiary of Shanghai MicroPort MedBot (Group) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "MicroPort^® MedBot^®"), have successfully completed its first robot-assisted UKA recently under the leadership of Prof. Yongqing Xu of the Department of Orthopedics of the 920th Hospital. This is the first robot-assisted UKA completed by 920th Hospital, marking that Honghu has entered the clinical trial stage in the field of UKA, and will provide more accurate and intelligent robotic medical solutions for knee arthritis patients in the future.

There were two cases of UKA. Case 1 was a 69-year-old female patient with right medial knee pain and limited mobility for 2 years. The symptoms did not improve significantly after conservative treatment. Case 2 was a 70-year-old female patient with left medial knee pain and limited mobility for more than 20 years. The symptoms did not improve significantly after conservative treatment. After thorough medical history, physical examination and auxiliary examination, both patients were diagnosed with anterior medial osteoarthritis of knee joint, consistent with the indications of UKA. They were respectively evaluated by prof. Tao Jin, Chuan Li, Bo Qi and Luqiao Pu of the orthopaedic team of 920th Hospital, and the UKA was recommended.

Before the surgery, Prof. Chuan Li and Tao Jin conducted 3D reconstruction of the knee joint CT image through Honghu preoperative planning software and formulated a personalized surgical solution for the patients. During the surgery, the robot guided the robot arm registration and bone registration, accurately completed the tibia and femur osteotomy according to the preoperative surgical plan, and successfully installed the unicondylar prosthesis. The whole process was smooth and efficient. After the surgery, the patients reported that the symptoms were significantly relieved. They could get out of bed the next day after surgery, and recovered from the hospital 3-5 days after surgery, and were satisfied with the speed of recovery.

MicroPort^® Orthopedic Surgical Robot

Embrace the future with precision, personalization and intelligence

Knee osteoarthritis is a common chronic disease of the elderly in China. According to the statistics, the prevalence of knee arthritis in people over 60 years old is 50%, of which 35%-50% have clinical manifestations. The prevalence in people over the age of 75 is about 80%, and the final disability rate is 53%. It is characterized by primary or secondary degeneration of articular cartilage and bone hyperplasia, also known as osteoarthropathy, degenerative arthritis and so on.

The purpose of knee osteoarthritis treatment is to relieve pain, delay disease progression, correct deformities, and improve or restore joint function. The overall treatment principle is to select tiered and personalized treatment solution, based on the patient's age, gender, body weight, own risk factors, lesion site and degree. The first is basic treatment, followed by drug treatment, and the third is knee repair surgery. For patients with severe knee osteoarthritis, knee arthroplasty can be used as the final treatment.

Unicondylar arthroplasty is more in line with the concept of tiered treatment of osteoarthritis, with less trauma and faster recovery, and can benefit more patients who do not need total knee arthroplasty (TKA) for early osteoarthritis. Precise, personalized and intelligent solutions have become an inevitable trend in the field of joint surgery, and orthopedic surgical robots are indispensable. Thanks to its power function of 3D preoperative planning, Honghu Orthopedic Surgical Robot developed independently by MicroPort^® NaviBot^® is capable of carrying out the 3D reconstruction of the knee joint based on the patient's CT images prior to the surgery, thus rendering the surgical planning visualized, digital and measurable, helping doctors to design preoperative surgical plans more efficiently and providing patients with personalized surgical plans for prosthesis implantation.

1 The registered trademark of HongHu is named “Skywalker” in abroad, which is in the process of application in USA, completed registration in EU and other countries and regions.