Fishing, golfing, playing with your dog in the backyard – these are all ordinary activities that for some may seem relatively easy, but when you're suffering from severe hip pain, even simple tasks can pose a great challenge. For 64-year-old Tracy Anderson, a former athlete and retired high school teacher and football coach, these tasks had become increasingly difficult due to the deterioration of his hip over the years. But last week, St. Joseph Hospital was able to change that.
St. Joseph Hospital in Orange recently became the first hospital in Orange County to perform a MAKOplasty® total hip replacement surgery. The procedure was performed using the RIO® Robotic Arm Interactive Orthopedic System, a highly advanced surgical system that enables consistent, reproducible surgical precision and accurate alignment and positioning of implants.
The physician performing the procedure, Board-certified Orthopedic Surgeon Dr. Ayaz Biviji, said the procedure went very well and the patient – Tracy Anderson – was up and walking the same afternoon.
"I can't wait to get back to doing what I used to do," Anderson said, "the care I received in the hospital was outstanding, and I think it's going to work out really well."
MAKOplasty® enables surgeons to reach a new level of reproducible precision in surgery, resulting in improved surgical outcomes, improved accuracy and alignment of implants and sparing of healthy bone. The RIO® system provides a patient-specific 3-D modeling of the patient's hip based on a pre-operative CT scan. During surgery, the system provides real-time data to help surgeons accurately place the implant within the desired orientation. Each hip replacement is tailored to the patient's unique anatomy, which improves surgical outcomes. Like other total hip replacement procedures, MAKOplasty Hip may be a treatment option for people who suffer from either non-inflammatory or inflammatory degenerative joint disease.
"Getting implants positioned correctly is a critical element in improving surgical outcomes and the lifespan of the implants used for hip replacement," said Dr. Biviji. "This technology enables us to more accurately achieve the biomechanical alignments needed to fit each patient's unique anatomy."
"We're very pleased to offer this advanced technology at St. Joseph Hospital," said Kevin Lundon, vice president of Operations for St. Joseph Hospital. "MAKOplasty is another way for our extremely talented surgeons to better care for our patients."
St. Joseph Hospital is also the first in Orange County to offer MAKOplasty® partial knee resurfacing, a minimally invasive treatment option for adults living with early to mid-stage osteoarthritis that has not yet progressed to all three compartments of the knee. MAKOplasty is less invasive than traditional total knee surgery and is also performed using the RIO robotic arm system.
For more information on MAKOplasty and St. Joseph Hospital's renowned orthopedic services please visit www.sjo.org.
About St. Joseph Health – St. Joseph Hospital
Founded in 1929, St. Joseph Hospital in Orange, California, is a nationally recognized, 525-bed, not-for-profit Catholic hospital dedicated to extending the healing ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange. Fully accredited by The Joint Commission and designated as a Magnet hospital for nursing excellence, St. Joseph Hospital's reputation for clinical excellence and compassionate, family-centered care draws patients from all over the United States. This is one reason why St. Joseph Hospital was named one of the top 10 hospitals in the Los Angeles/Orange County area by U.S. News & World Report. With a highly recognized 1,000-member medical staff and more than 3,800 support staff, St. Joseph Hospital is home to more than 75 specialty programs, including The Center for Cancer Prevention and Treatment, the Heart and Vascular Center and a nationally acclaimed Orthopedics program that has been ranked among the top 50 in the nation by
U.S. News & World Report. Equally important is St. Joseph Hospital's dedication to caring for the medically underserved through health education programs, a free-standing medical and dental clinic, and mobile health vans. St. Joseph Hospital depends on philanthropic support from the community to carry out its mission. These efforts are coordinated through the St. Joseph Hospital Foundation.