SMH Among First to Offer Patients “Smart” Knee Replacements

September 21 – Sarasota

Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is among the first hospitals in the nation offering patients a “smart” knee replacement – and the first in Florida to offer the procedure robotically.

Orthopedic Surgeon Edward Stolarski, MD, successfully performed the robotic knee replacement on Sept. 7, implanting Zimmer Biomet’s Persona IQ. The world’s first smart knee implant, the Persona IQ contains sensors that measure performance, including range of motion, stride length, walking speed, and step count. Approximately 30 hospitals in the country now offer this implant, which became available late last year.

Dr. Stolarski will use the data to monitor and optimize patient recovery and evaluate the effectiveness and longevity of the smart knee replacement. The smart implant was created by Zimmer Biomet, which also created ROSA, the robotic surgical assistant Stolarski used to implant the device. SMH added ROSA to its orthopedic surgery platform several years ago. 

“Using ROSA has already helped provide our joint-replacement patients with better outcomes, a faster return to their active lives, and longer-lasting pain relief,” said Dr. Stolarski, who serves as medical director of orthopedic surgery at SMH. “Now with the Smart Knee replacement, we can obtain real-time information that allows physicians to closely monitor and measure their patients’ recovery every step of the way, while patients can track their activity level and progress toward their mobility goals.”

The Persona IQ knee implant includes sensors that constantly capture long-term post-operative data on:

• Average walking speed
• Stride length
• Range of motion
• Distance traveled
• Step count

The sensors do not track a patient’s location. Data collected by the sensors is transmitted daily to a small home base station, uploaded to the secure cloud, and made available to patients and physicians via Zimmer Biomet’s mymobility app. The app organizes the data for patients, and shares the information with their physician. The app also includes many helpful tools for patients, including exercises and patient education materials.

Bradenton resident Susan Hook, the first SMH patient to receive the smart knee replacement, said the technology has already exceeded her expectations. “I like knowing my doctor stays closely connected to me during my recovery,” she said several days after her surgery with Dr. Stolarski, “and the app is great in helping me track my excercises and progress.”

Consistently recognized for excellence in joint and spine care, Sarasota Memorial was recently recognized as a “high performing” hospital in knee and hip replacement surgery in U.S. News’2022-23 “Best Hospitals” report. Dr. Stolarski says this state-of-the-art technology is just another tool to help ensure great outcomes for patients. 

“While the Persona IQ Smart Knee replacement may not be right for every patient, I believe every patient who gets this technology will benefit in their recovery,” Dr. Stolarski said.  “I am excited by the possibilities this technology provides and I am looking forward to offering it to more patients in the future.”