Professor Cobb was invited to write an article for Issue 4 of Orthopaedics Today Europe about the role technology has in orthopaedic surgery and if it does indeed make a difference in outcomes – “Technology can make a difference in outcomes for most arthroplasty Luddites”. There have been a number of discussions in medical journals the last few months about technology and the role of robotics in surgery; however this article gives a plotted history of how surgical tools have developed over the last 20 years and the impact they have had.
The article concludes with Professor Cobb summarising;
Only two things are required from surgical technology: a precise plan of surgery, including the size of the devices needed and exactly where they should go, and a timely and cost-effective way of carrying out the plan. In 2012 as a profession, we all know more about what needs to be done in a way that we simply did not last century.
What has transformed the horizon is the advent of the 3D printer – a technology that allows surgeons to achieve the plan faster than with conventional surgery and at a reduced cost because of reduced instrumentation and inventory. So it may be both cheaper and quicker, but what remains to be seen, however, is whether the reliability matches the robots. This isn’t the end of the artisan. This technology can be used by Luddites. It simply makes them better surgeons.
To read the full article click here: http://bit.ly/PkQpya