Digital planning has significant benefits for complex defective positions and endoprosthetics

Patients win too

Nikiforov Hospital in St. Petersburg treated approximately 1500 patients in 2015. Orthopedic and trauma surgeons perform an average of 35 to 40 operations every week, including four or five endoprosthetics, osteosyntheses, corrective osteotomies, and arthroscopic interventions.

Rapid launching of digital pre-op planning

Just one year after the hospital was built, it converted from conventional template-based planning to digital planning in 2013. They chose mediCAD. As of the end of 2016, approximately 3500 hospitals and orthopedic practices around the world are using the software. The core of the program is a database of implants that contains items from more than 130 global manufacturers. Aside from two-dimensional planning, mediCAD Hectec also offers 3-D planning software and a solution for mobile devices. mediCAD Hectec updates this database monthly so that surgeons have access to the most current implants as well as commonly-used prosthetics. This is particularly important when dealing with revisions and corrections of special defective positions. No matter how it is used, mediCAD ensures that operations can be planned faster and with greater precision. This has been proven during routine operations in St. Petersburg

Focus on knees and hips

The most common use of the software is to plan endoprosthetic interventions at the knee and hip joint as well as fractures and trauma surgeries. This is when the reliability of the results and precise matching of the size of components and implants during the operation is particularly apparent.
According to Dr. Oleg Bashinsky: « When we plan an operation digitally, we can be sure that it will almost always go exactly according to plan. We no longer have to correct the size of the planned implants, nor their adjustment. » Faster planning is particularly valuable with complex operations, such as knee operations, while at the same time delivering greater accuracy. After a brief orientation, surgeons can complete such plans in just a few minutes.

All expectations fulfilled

After three years, all of the expectations at the St. Petersburg hospital have been met: « Anyone who has experienced digital planning will never want to go back to analog methods again, » according to Dr. Bashinsky. « I even know doctors at other hospitals who had reservations about digital planning, but actually enjoyed using the solution and were convinced of the benefits once they tried it. » As a bonus, the hospital saves money by eliminating the printing of analog radiographs. Automatic documentation is an important factor for handling potential legal problems.