Divisional Clinical Director for Joint Replacement and Orthopaedic Oncology
Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital
Fortunately for myself and thousands of other orthopaedic surgeons the answer is no. Currently, robots cannot autonomously perform a knee or hip replacement and are unlikely to be able to in the medium term. Robots such as the MAKO from Stryker are utilised as a new technology to help the orthopaedic surgeon to improve the accuracy of implant positioning. The MAKO is a haptic robot, meaning that it will guide the surgeon’s hand holding the saw within certain parameters to make the bony cuts, onto which sit the implants. It does not allow the saw blade to leave the boundaries set during the preoperative planning, therefore also minimising the risk to the surrounding soft tissue structures such as vessels, ligaments and nerves.
The aim is to improve the accuracy of the cuts and, importantly, to eliminate cuts made that are significantly out of line or angle. This leads to a more accurately placed implant, better soft tissue balancing and potentially improved longevity of
the implant and long-term functional outcomes. To prove the benefit of this new technology, data out to 10 – 15 years will be needed to directly compare against outcomes with the current gold standards, however the early results are promising.
Currently there are relatively few of these haptic robots available for use in the National Health Service due to the additional costs, although there are more available in the private sector. The RNOH was the first NHS hospital to engage with this technology for use in the public sector, enabling us to treat patients and enter patients into trials and it is also available for use within the Private Patients Unit here at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital.
Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital
The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital (RNOH) is one of five Specialist Orthopaedic Hospitals in the UK. It has a hand in training 20% of the country’s orthopaedic surgeons and is listed as being in the top 10 orthopaedic hospitals in the world.
We provide specialist orthopaedic care across the musculoskeletal spectrum including bone and soft tissue tumours, specialist joint replacement and all areas of the arms, legs and spine. We also have the dedicated specialist complimentary services on hand that are so important to maximise patients’ outcomes, including pain management, rehabilitation, orthotics and physiotherapy. Providing regional, national and international patients with specialist high quality care.
- Enquiries regarding advice and treatment can be directed to:
Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital – Private Patients Unit:
Tel: +44 208 909 5114
Web: www.rnohprivatecare.com
Email: rnoh.internationalbusiness.privatecare@nhs.net
#1 specialist orthopaedic hospital in the UK
The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital has just been confirmed as the #1 specialist orthopaedic hospital in the UK (again!).
RNOH Private Care offer private healthcare within the NHS. This is delivered via a dedicated private ward with en suite, individual rooms. Delivering the highest standards of service alongside the clinical excellence for which the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital is renowned. We treat adults and children (from age 0). All profits raised from private work are given straight back to the Trust.
Mr William Aston
Mr William Aston is an internationally fellowship trained orthopaedic surgeon who has worked at the RNOH as a consultant for 12 years. He was honoured to be awarded the ABC Travelling fellowship in 2014 from the British Orthopaedic Association. He specialises in primary and revision knee and hip replacement, through to end stage limb salvage and the management of benign and malignant bone and soft tissue tumours. He is currently the Divisional Clinical Director for Joint replacement and Orthopaedic Oncology and has interests in research and the training of future orthopaedic surgeons.
