ROSA, A New Surgical Robot, Assists With Hip, Knee Surgeries At Sarasota Memorial

SARASOTA, FL — ROSA, a robotic surgical assistant, has been helping orthopedic surgeons perform knee replacements in the Sarasota Memorial Health Care System since her debut in 2019. Now, she’s primed to assist the surgical team with hip replacements.

Zimmer Biomet’s ROSA Hip, the latest addition to the orthopedic robot’s surgical system, was recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Its added capabilities allow orthopedic surgeons using an anterior approach to partner with ROSA on total hip replacements, Sarasota Memorial said in a news release.

Dr. Edward Stolarski, medical director of Sarasota Memorial’s orthopedic surgery division, and orthopedic surgeon Dr. Sean Dingle were among the first physicians in Florida to use ROSA on knee replacements in 2019.

The precision the technology adds to total and partial knee replacement prompted SMH to expand ROSA’s role in the operating room.

“As surgeons, we still have complete control over case planning and the actual surgery,” Stolarski said, “but ROSA’s advanced capabilities provide us with data and visualization tools before and during surgery that ensure more precise orientation and placement of hip and knee replacement components, and that can lead to a better performing, longer lasting joint.”

Stolarski, who helps educate surgeons from across the country in robotic hip and knee technology and performs most of his hip transplants using an anterior approach, is scheduled to perform the first robotic-assisted hip replacement using ROSA for the hospital system later this month.

Using patient-specific data collected by ROSA, surgeons can create and execute highly personalized surgical plans for each patient who needs a hip replacement, partial knee replacement or total knee replacement, SMH said.

Among other tasks, ROSA helps measure bone and tissue tension in a patient’s hips and knees, and continuously monitors them with real-time imaging throughout the orthopedic procedures. Although ROSA Hip is designed for surgeons who use a direct anterior approach, work is under way to equip the robot with additional data and tools to assist surgeons who prefer a posterior approach.