Peninsula Orthopaedic Associates using new technology to improve joint replacement surgery

SALISBURY, Md. – Peninsula Orthopaedic Associates made a medical milestone on the Eastern Shore with some new technology.

Surgeons were able to successfully complete the Eastern Shore’s first joint replacement surgery using a Stryker Mako SmartRobotics machine. “The robot helps make really accurate cuts in joint replacement in a manner that is highly accurate and reproduceable for many surgeons” said Dr. Pasquale Patrera.

Dr. Patrera says patients will get a CT scan before surgery. That scan is then fed into the robot’s computer system. During surgery, Dr. Patrera says they are able to map out the patient’s joint and make sure it’s accurate to the CT scan. “It takes knee replacement to a new level of accuracy for many surgeons,” he said.

Joint replacement surgeries are expected to increase by as much as 189% by 2030, according to Peninsula Orthopaedic Associates. Dr. Patrera says having this technology on hand could help them keep up with demand. “In the past, we would tell patients to wait, and they would say ‘It’s not going to last long enough. You have to wait until you’re older.’ Patients nowadays are unwilling to accept that. They want to stay active and they want to be pain free. There’s also a high prevalence of knee arthritis resulting from injuries,” he said.

Overall, patient and surgeon satisfaction could be easier to achieve with the new technology, according to Dr. Patrera. “It’s really hard to recreate that level of accuracy. So, it helps make a good surgeon a great surgeon. I think that’s what we’re looking for; we’re looking for a technology that brings us all to that same level of competence, and that same level of achieving good results for patients,” he said.