Since the mid 70's, medical procedures have undergone some pretty drastic changes, transforming surgery as we know it for the better. Computers are making their way into operating rooms, lending their helping hand in various surgeries. Computer Assisted Surgery (CAS) technologies provide physicians and surgical teams with three-dimensional views of surgery areas, enabling more precise positioning of surgical instruments. This is very good news for patients. By using CAS, procedures become shorter and less invasive, while patient safety increases and patient morbidity decreases.

Total Hip Arthroplasty welcomes CAS:

During their time in medical school, orthopedic surgeons are taught that "surgical exposure" is a crucial factor when performing successful total hip arthroplasty (THA).

Traditional methods of performing this type of surgery severely limit clear visualization of key bony landmarks. This has made it extremely difficult for surgeons to achieve accurate fixation and orientation of the implants, resulting in the exposure of significant amounts of skeletal bone. All of this makes THA a more invasive surgery and leads to other complications, such as long patient recovery time, blood loss and ossification.

A team of doctors from the Institute for Computer Assisted Orthopedic Surgery, The Western Pennsylvania Hospital and the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center wanted to begin utilizing advanced surgical procedures. They knew that this would improve patient outcome by disrupting less soft tissue and reducing pain, decreasing recovery time and allowing for fewer complications. This team of surgeons believed that surgical navigation technologies and computer assisted tools would be the base for achieving less invasive techniques when performing THA.

The team of doctors focused their study on the results of using a mini-incision surgical technique, enabled by surgical navigation tools, for THA. One hundred and twenty one patients and 137 hips underwent surgery using this technique. The same surgeon operated on all patients, and all CAS procedures were performed using an image-guidance navigation system. The system used in these surgeries had software that registered and matched a preoperative CT scan to the patients' position on the operating table, allowing the surgeon to become accurately oriented with the implant area without full visualization of bony landmarks. Optical light-emitting diode (LED)

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