BATHURST residents now have access to the best technology when it comes to knee replacements.
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Bathurst Private Hospital has purchased the ROSA Knee System, giving orthopaedic surgeons access to the latest technology for total knee replacements.
Local orthopaedic surgeons Dr Lachlan Host and Dr Peter Kilby have already started operating on people with its assistance.
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Dr Kilby said that new technology "with navigation and computers" has been emerging on a regular basis, but the latest development is more about the software.
ROSA is used both preoperatively and during surgery.
"It's a planning tool on how we can get the knee replacement to better fit the patient," Dr Kilby said, explaining ROSA could determine the right size knee from the x-ray prior to the surgery.
"The second part is, the robot, it has an arm that comes into the operation and it can help to guide us to where that cut should go. We as the surgeons still make that cut, but the robot has an arm that comes in and shows us where that cut should go.
"And then the third part, the robot can check how straight we've got it and can measure the result at the end."
Operating times are expected to reduce from a couple of hours to an hour and half as the surgeons become more accustomed to it.
The technology became available within the last 12 months and early evidence suggests it will result in improved outcomes for patients, including a better range of motion.
"The anecdotal evidence so far, and some of the earlier studies, are certainly suggesting that it will hopefully lead to improved outcomes," Dr Host said.
"... I think if we can make even one person better and everyone else is coming out just as equally good as we would hope them to be, it's a win."
Both surgeons are excited to have ROSA in Bathurst, as it means people won't need to travel elsewhere to access the best technology.
That is of particular importance to Dr Kilby, who moved back to the country five years ago after completing his training in Sydney.
While there, he saw many patients coming from Bathurst to receive treatment and that was something he wanted to address.
"[ROSA] helps us deliver a better service to country people," Dr Kilby said.
It also means that recovery can be easier on patients, who won't need to travel far for their appointments.
"It's not just a one-off trip; it's a trip to see the surgeon to get the diagnosis, the trip to the pre-admission clinic, the trip for surgery and then all of the follow-up appointments need to be with that same surgeon to keep that continuity of care," Dr Host said.
"The aim was always to try to establish a full orthopaedic service out here so that people could see us locally, be treated locally, have their rehab locally, so it is certainly a big help for the patients."
At the moment, ROSA is primarily being used to treat patients in the private system, but Dr Host has just completed his first operation on a public patient using the robot.
