Groundbreaking technology for knee surgery at Limpopo MediClinic
Dr. Iwan Scott, well-known orthopaedic surgeon in the city, remarked that it is the first time that the Cori machine is being used in the province.
POLOKWANE – Limpopo MediClinic on Tuesday welcomed their newest team member to one of its surgical wards: Cori.
Short for Core of Real Intelligence, Cori is a surgical system that enables robotics-assisted knee replacement surgery.
Currently, there are just a few of these machines available countrywide.
Dr. Iwan Scott, well-known orthopaedic surgeon in the city, remarked that it is the first time that the machine is being used in the province.
“This specific machine assists with knee surgeries. As the surgeon, I start operating on the patient, and Cori assists.”
Cori is a handheld robotic tool that boasts a failure margin of 0,1%.
A surgeon will open up the knee up to the point where the bone is cut to insert the replacement knee. Then, Cori is instructed as to what the knee should look like once the operation is done.
The doctor uses this tool to ensure precise cuts, whereafter the surgeon can insert the prosthetics to a perfect fit.
Scott says one of the benefits of the tool is a shorter operating time.
“The recovery time for patients is also shorter. Medical aid schemes cover the use of the machine, but patients will need to stay overnight for observation,” he added.
He stressed that Cori does not replace any person’s role and effort during procedures, but on the contrary enhance existing treatment.
“Every operation is converted into a database which other doctors across the world have access to. The database offers information for doctors who need more information on a specific operation.”
Scott says there are also still instances in which the tool won’t be able to assist.
“A patient that has had more than one knee operation, a patient that is overweight and in cases of severe deformities, these factors will influence the doctor’s decision to operate.”
The machine has to be booked two weeks in advance and will then only be available at the hospital for a short period.
This week, Cori was at the hospital for a day, assisting with four procedures.
According to Scott, the age group of those requiring surgery has also seen a change.
“In the past, the knee replacement operations were required for patients between 55 and 65 years of age, but lately, we have seen patients much younger requiring the same procedure.”
