Ceterix Orthopaedics™, Inc. today announced commercial availability of the company's NovoStitch™ suture passer in the United States. The company's device enables surgeons to place stitches in tight joint compartments, including those in knees, hips and shoulders, during minimally invasive arthroscopic surgical procedures.
“This means that almost a million patients each year are undergoing procedures that will significantly increase their risk of osteoarthritis later in life. Our goal is to make meniscectomy less common by providing tools to make repair more feasible.”
The NovoStitch suture passer offers surgeons the potential to place circumferential compression stitches in locations and patterns that were previously not possible. As a result, the technology may help surgeons avoid removing meniscal tissue in some knee injury cases that are currently considered non-repairable.
"Millions of people undergo arthroscopic procedures in the United States each year. We are excited about the potential for the NovoStitch technology to offer additional choices for surgeons and patients in these procedures, particularly procedures involving knee meniscal tears," said John McCutcheon, Ceterix's President and CEO.
Tears of the meniscus, a curved cartilage disc located within the middle of the knee, are among the most common injuries, and meniscal surgery is the single-most commonly performed arthroscopic procedure in the U.S. Surgical treatment options include repair, in which the cartilage is sewn or anchored together; surgical removal of the torn section (partial meniscectomy); or surgical removal of the entire meniscus (total meniscectomy).
"Due to the difficulty of access and the limitations of current arthroscopic instruments, the vast majority of meniscal tears are not repaired, but are either partially or totally resected," Mr. McCutcheon added. "This means that almost a million patients each year are undergoing procedures that will significantly increase their risk of osteoarthritis later in life. Our goal is to make meniscectomy less common by providing tools to make repair more feasible."
It is well established in orthopaedic literature that meniscus repair should be performed whenever possible to prevent long-term degenerative changes in the knee. Use of the NovoStitch technology may allow more patients to be treated with meniscus repair rather than meniscectomy because it is designed to allow surgeons to anatomically compress tears that were previously difficult or impossible to sew.
Company Announces Peer-Reviewed Publication Describing Technique
In addition, the company announced the publication of a peer-reviewed article in Arthroscopy Techniques entitled "The Circumferential Compression Stitch", describing techniques for using the device in meniscus procedures.
The paper, which was authored by Los Angeles-based orthopaedic surgeon Justin D. Saliman, M.D., Ceterix founder and Chief Medical Officer, notes that the technology enables surgeons to "freely sew within the tight arthroscopic environment of the knee and allows placement of suture patterns previously considered difficult, if not impossible, to achieve."
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