The Future of Joint Replacement

To improve patient’s care and increase their comfort “SOLITAIRE” the Centre for Joint Replacement, always tries to upgrade itself with new technologies and invests in its infrastructure. To upkeep this tradition, we have added CUVIS JOINT ROBOTIC SYSTEM in our armamentarium to treat our patients.

MERIL’S CUVIS JOINT ROBOTIC SYSTEM is one of the recent innovations making it one & only fully automatic robotic technology system in artificial joint replacement surgeries. With the help of 3D Bone Scan models and virtual surgery during planning stage before the actual surgery on the patient the overall outcome is more reliable, accurate & better. The technique used is very easy and user friendly to operate, helping the surgeon to customise surgeries for individual patient making it more precise and safer.

With the help of the Cuvis Joint System we are able to achieve more than optimum results by planning precise bone cuts & selecting the joint size beforehand. With comprehensive pain management during and even postsurgery, we have minimal complications with high success rate. Moreover, even our patients require minimal post operative physiotherapy assistance.


Why Robotic Artificial Joint Surgery?


1. Patients - Personalized pre-planning& selection of implant

We all know that each individual has its own characteristic features, so also the bones have, which are very specific to each & every individual. Thus, to give customized solution Meril’s Robotic CUVIS Joint system shows the patient’s bones in 3D images, and the surgeon then can use these images for pre-planning of the surgery. This technology helps the surgeon to select an artificial joint for the patient with accurate sizing, alignment & axis orientation. In this way a personalized touch is given in each surgery to the patient.

2. Surgeon - Precise cutting for sub-millimetre accuracy

After the pre-planned virtual surgery, the Robotic Arm of the CUVIS JOINT ROBOTIC SYSTEM cuts the patient’s bones very precisely with the sub-millimetre dimensional accuracy making the fixation of the artificial joint to the patient’s bone very accurate to give more than optimum results.

3. Overall Outcome

The precision of CUVIS JOINT ROBOTIC SYSTEM surgery gives more improved quality of life to the patient: -

  • By better & accurate implant placement resulting in more natural feeling after surgery.
  • By reducing complications like Pulmonary Embolism; Fracture; Rate of infection as fewer instruments are used.
  • By reducing risk of injury to adjacent tissues resulting in more safety
  • By reducing rate of revision surgeries because of longer implant survivorship

Thus, all these makes overall outcome of the Robotic Joint Replacement Surgeries more satisfactory for both patients and surgeons.


How is Fully Automatic Robotic Surgery different from other Robot Systems?

The CUVIS JOINT ROBOTIC SYSTEM works on three different hard-wares:-

1. Main Console

Main console works as an eye of the robotic system. It displays the artificial bone and all processes related to robotic surgery. The main Console is integrated with OTS (Optimal Tracking System) to facilitate the integration of real time data received from the patient during the registration process with 3D bone model. This is an integral part of total process to execute the robotic surgery.

2. Planner

J-Planner works as the brain of the CUVIS JOINT ROBOTIC SYSTEM. After getting CT scan, images are loaded to J Planner and the surgery is planned. In J Planner process, the surgeon with the help of the software& his experience decides the implant’s size & its alignment most suitable to the patient according to their 3D images constructed on the basis of the loaded CT scan images. Then all the bones cut as planned during process are done and the selected implants are fixed on bone models to ascertain the surgical results. This virtual surgery on the system helps the surgeon to conduct the surgery more perfectly on the patient.

3. Robotic Arm

Robotic Arm is the most important part of the system. It performs all the cuts planned during J- Planner process. The arm usually works in six different axes to perform an effortless surgery. This arm has miller cutting tool which gives precision up to 0.5mm. This arm can efficiently perform surgery with controlled speed depending upon the bone quality of the patient and the surgeons need.


How it works?

Step 1: Patient Selection

After clinical & radiological examination, the selected patient will be advised for specific CT scan imaging.

Sept 2: Patient’s CT scan

CT scan imaging is mandatory before the surgery as bones & joints of every individual are very specific & accordingly the total surgery is planned for customised joint size & its alignment.

Step 3: 3D model planning

CT scan images are uploaded to robotic J planner. After their conversion to 3D bone model total surgery is planned virtually.

Step 4: Verification of Planning

To conduct the surgery, first the Patient is connected to the robotic unit and stabilized for the surgery. Next, the surgeon will do registration process on the patient’s actual bone with the help of Robotic probe to integrate the 3D bone model constructed using the CT images to match with patient’s native bone.

Step 5: Surgery Conclusion

After in-depth verification of the data, the robotic arm will get the command by the surgeon to perform the surgery as per the plan in accordance with the size, position, alignment, angle and direction of the artificial implants as was decided during the virtual surgery in J-Planner process. After all required bone cuts done by robotic arm the robotic part of surgery concludes. After this, the remaining part of the surgery is executed by the surgeon using pre-selected artificial joint as done in conventional joint replacement surgery.