Outpatient spine and orthopedic surgery has accelerated in the last two years, and with that could come growth in ASC-based technologies, according to Jason Weisstein, MD, of Yavapai Regional Medical Center in Prescott, Ariz.
Dr. Weisstein shared with Becker's the orthopedic technologies he thinks will take hold, from single-use tools to artificial intelligence.
Note: This response was edited for style.
Question: Which orthopedic technologies do you think will take off this year?
Dr. Jason Weisstein: Given the incredible momentum behind outpatient, ambulatory-based surgery, there will be increasing demand for ASC-based enabling technologies. That may mean a variety of technologies that find their wheelhouse in the ASC: single-use implants and instruments, active-intelligence platforms that crystallize the outpatient patient care pathway, or ASC-based navigation and robotic platforms.
Single-use implants and instrument trays will decrease the need for large sterilization machines and will improve turnover efficiency. Artificial intelligence platforms may enable surgeons to predict who will have the best outcomes in an outpatient surgery setting and what aspects of care can be improved not only surgically but also medically. This may mean that we understand patient-specific risk before undertaking an outpatient surgical intervention. Robotic-based surgical platforms will continue to evolve, already making limb alignment more accurate and screw placement in spinal surgery more precise.