In 2004, Mazor SpineAssist became the first robot approved by the FDA to guide the placement of pedicle screws.
Robotics has developed rapidly since then, with three systems leading the field in robotic-assisted spine surgery.
Everything you need to know about the three major spine systems:
ExcelsiusGPS (Globus Medical)
Globus Medical acquired Excelsius in 2014 for an estimated $40 million and earned CE Mark approval for ExcelsiusGPS in the European Union in January 2017. The FDA provided 510(k) clearance for the system in August 2017.
The device combines a robotic arm with navigation to improve accuracy in the placement of screws during spine surgery and reduce radiation exposure for the surgical team.
The platform is priced at about $1.5 million and supports screw placement in several approaches including posterior cervical, posterior thoracic sacroiliac and posterior lumbar.
Mazor X (Medtronic)
In December 2018, Medtronic completed the acquisition of Mazor Robotics in a $1.7 billion deal, as part of its plan to combine its spinal implants, navigation and 3D imaging technology with the Mazor X robotic guidance system.
One month later Medtronic launched the Mazor X Stealth Edition for spine surgery, which allows surgeons to create personalized 3D surgical plans before surgery and holds surgical instrumentation in place with a robotic arm during spine procedures.
The Mazor X costs about $850,000 with each surgery resulting in about $1,500 in disposables sales.
ROSA Spine (Zimmer Biomet)
In 2016, Zimmer Biomet acquired Medtech SA for at least $132 million. Medtech developed the ROSA Brain and ROSA Spine robotic-assisted surgery systems, which cost about $700,000 each.
ROSA Spine was cleared by the FDA in 2016, but the company's new technology — the ROSA One Spine System — received FDA approval in March 2019.
ROSA ONE Spine also combines robotics and navigation with real-time patient tracking capability, assisting surgeons in minimally invasive and complex thoracolumbar spine procedures.