Robot-assisted surgery in total hip replacement

The most important prerequisite for permanent fixation of an implant is primary stability. Osteointegration of the implant is a major goal in cementless total hip replacement (THR). This means direct contact between bone and implant, leading to fixation of the implant in the bone without the interference of fibrous tissue. In addition to the design of the implant, the structure of the implant surface and the material of the implant, the specific operational technique plays a major role in permanent fixation. Only the conical fixation of femoral implants guarantees high primary stability in cementless THR. The type of fixation of the implant in the femoral cavity and the resulting load transfer from implant to bone has a decisive effect on the durability of the prostheses. In order to achieve optimal primary fixation of the implant, robot-assisted implantation of the cementless implant has been performed at the Berufsgenossenschaftliche Unfallklinik Frankfurt am Main since the summer of 1994. After preoperative planning at a three-dimensional graphic work station these data are transferred to the robot, which transforms the preoperative planning by milling the femoral cavity with the highest precision. So far this type of surgery has been performed on 300 patients. The encouraging postoperative results prompted us to install the second system of Robodoc al the Berufsgenossenschaftliche Unfallklinik Frankfurt.