“IT’S A RELATIVELY NEW TECHNOLOGY THAT’S COME ALONG OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS ... MOST PEOPLE THINK IT’S GOING TO BE THE STANDARD OF CARE IN THE VERY NEAR FUTURE.”


S tryker Spinal Navigation System ORTHOPEDICS I


magine you’re working on a remodeling project that requires you to drive a screw into the dry- wall of a bathroom. Imagine doing so by just


eyeballing it, rather than taking steps to make sure you’re about to drill into a wall stud and not an elec- trical conduit or plumbing. Now imagine how much better you’d feel if you had a device that helped en- sure you were driving that screw where it could do the most good rather than cause more damage. That’s essentially the value of the Stryker Spinal


Navigation System, which helps orthopedic surgeons more precisely place screws during spinal surgery. “It gives us a different way of placing screws,”


said Dr. Troy Caron, a board-certified orthopedic surgeon. “It just gives you one extra level of safety


24 | OZARKS HEALTHCARE | WINTER 2021


for the patient so you know exactly where you’re putting things.” In the past, surgeons relied on 2D images such


as X-rays to help determine the placement of the screws. With the new navigating system, surgeons utilize the equivalent of an antenna that maps the patient’s body similar to a CT scan. The surgeon then uses a special device that interprets this body scan information to demonstrate the exact drill point. “It’s a relatively new technology that’s come along over the last five years,” Caron said. “More and more surgeons are using it, and most people think it’s go- ing to be the standard of care in the very near future. The fact that we have it here already shows that Ozarks Healthcare is really ahead of that curve.”


Above: The Stryker Spinal Navigation System showing the exact drill point in a patient's spine. Photo courtesy of Ozarks Healthcare.


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