WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Two of the most experienced orthopaedic surgeons at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center are using a new robotic arm system – the first in North Carolina – to improve function and longevity, relieve pain and enhance recovery in uni-compartmental knee surgeries.
The system is used for placing implants in one compartment of the knee that has been worn out by osteoarthritis or has been damaged.
Riyaz H. Jinnah, M.D., and Gary G. Poehling, M.D., both professors in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, are using the MAKO Tactile Guidance System™ for uni-compartmental or uni-knee surgeries. This is the only system in North Carolina and one of 10 in use across the country. Jinnah heads the Joint Replacement Program at Wake Forest Baptist.
“There is a large part of our population that has arthritis in one part of the knee,” Jinnah said, and they are likely candidates for uni-knee surgery. Using the robotic arm gives more precision by assisting the physicians in the planning of the surgery, trimming away the damaged area, sizing the implant, and placing the implant.
Recovery is quicker and a return to active life is easier with a partial knee replacement rather than a total knee replacement, Jinnah said. For more information about the surgery, contact the Joint Replacement Program at (336) 716-8093.
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Media Contacts: Ann Hopkins, ahopkins@wfubmc.edu, (336) 716-1280, or Bonnie Davis, bdavis@wfubmc.edu, or Shannon Koontz, shkoontz@wfubmc.edu, (336) 716-4587.