Oct 17 2013
Blue Belt Technologies announces the first sale of a Navio orthopedic surgical system to an Ambulatory Surgery Center. The Thomas Jefferson Riverview Surgical Center, at the Navy Yard in Philadelphia, entered into an agreement to purchase Blue Belt’s Navio robotic-controlled surgical system.
The Jefferson Surgical Center is a multi-specialty ambulatory surgery center, developed by area physicians, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and Nueterra Healthcare. It is the first surgery center in the U.S. to purchase and use the Navio system to assist in precision partial knee replacement surgery.
The Navio robotic-controlled handpiece assists the surgeon in precision bone preparation. (Photo: Business Wire)
“Jefferson Surgical Center has been a top-tier professional surgical center with highly talented and compassionate nurses and technicians and a leading administration since its inception,” says Dr. Jess H. Lonner, Associate Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at Thomas Jefferson University and Attending Orthopaedic Surgeon, Rothman Institute. “Now it has solidified itself as arguably the nation’s most innovative and cutting-edge outpatient surgical facility. Rothman Institute has been one of the few groups nationwide performing a large volume of partial knee replacements on an outpatient basis, and now with Riverview offering the most advanced and precise imageless robotic technology available for partial knee replacements—Navio—we are able to offer a unique service for many patients suffering with arthritis of the knee.”
The Navio™ system is a CT-free, open platform surgical system that utilizes patented Precision Freehand Sculpting technology to deliver the precision of robotic-assisted bone preparation directly into the surgeon’s hands. On October 9, 2013, Dr. Jess Lonner utilized the Navio system to perform the world’s first partial knee replacement utilizing Blue Belt Technologies’ proprietary STRIDE™ Unicondylar Knee system. In treatment of a patient presenting with medial osteoarthritis, Dr. Lonner used Navio™ to create a surgical plan, resurface the patient’s diseased bone and implant a STRIDE™ prosthesis to restore function to the patient’s knee and reduce the pain associated with osteoarthritis.
“We could not be more thrilled to partner with the Jefferson Surgical Center to bring robotic-assisted partial knee replacements to patients in the greater Philadelphia area,” says Eric B. Timko, President and CEO of Blue Belt Technologies. “We firmly believe that the precision and economics of our Navio system, paired with our optimized STRIDE knee system, make it a perfect fit for building an orthopedic robotics program in any outpatient setting. This Navio site will be an excellent model and example of the benefits of adopting new technology into any burgeoning orthopedic environment.”