Joint replacement

Musculoskeletal conditions account for the fourth largest NHS budget (£5 billion). It is estimated that 30.6 million working days are lost on an annual basis due to absence caused by musculoskeletal conditions.

It has been documented that replaced joints do not have normal kinematics, however it remains unclear how far they deviate from normal. There is a clinical need for technologies to enable the design of joint replacements which offer reduced pain post-operation and kinematics closer to those seen in a healthy subject.

Joint Tracker

The current gold standards in musculoskeletal imaging are MRI and CT, with images traditionally acquired in the rested, supine position. This is clearly far from adequate for assessing patients’ functional performance and response to loading such as that encountered during walking. The orthopaedics industry is looking to ultrasound to provide radiation-free, non-invasive solutions for the assessment of joint kinematics.

Oxford orthopaedic clinicians and biomedical engineers have worked together to develop a system combining motion capture and ultrasound technologies.  The system works to analyse the difference in joint kinematics between a healthy volunteer, a patient with a pain free knee replacement and a patient with a painful knee replacement.  This is the first phase in plans to develop a portable device suited to the assessment of joints in a clinical setting.

Readiness for market

A patent application protecting a device that combines ultrasound, motion capture and the process of tracking a subject has been filed.  Prototype systems and software have been developed and a broader clinical trial demonstrating the system in a range of patient groups is in plan.  Oxford University Innovation would like to speak with companies interested in developing a commercial product based on this technology.