A decade ago, having joint replacement often meant a three- to five-day hospital stay. Today, many patients have surgery and go home the same day.
While ambulatory surgery centers have existed for over 50 years, medical advances now allow more orthopedic patients to have complex procedures as outpatients, too.
“The quality, efficiency and patient service found in ASCs often surpasses that seen in major hospitals,” Dr. Douglas W. Lundy, spokesperson for the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, told Newsweek.
Improvements before, during and after surgery have allowed doctors to safely treat more patients outside the traditional hospital, explained Dr. Michael P. Ast, an orthopedic surgeon and chief medical innovation officer at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City.
“The ability to safely discharge a patient from an ASC on the same day of a hip or knee replacement is really about ensuring patients are in the most appropriate physical health prior to surgery,” he said. Improvements in anesthesia, pain and fluid management are key advances, too.
Robotics and computer-assisted navigation have also changed how joint replacements are planned and performed, expanding the use of patient-specific 3D planning in joint replacement surgery, helping surgeons position implants more precisely.
There is now a wide range of implants, and the best choice can depend on a patient’s anatomy, bone quality or activity level.
AI could take personalization further. Surgeons currently have no reliable way to predict which surgical techniques, implants or instruments are best for an individual patient, Dr. Antonia F. Chen, chair of orthopaedic surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center, said.
But as doctors collect more information about patients and how they respond to treatment, AI could help identify patterns and better tailor treatment.
“As we collect more patient data and tie them to patient outcomes, we will be able to harness the power of AI to assist with predictive analytics,” said Chen.
Ast added that this accuracy will help reduce short- and long-term complications while boosting patient satisfaction.
AI could also flag patients who are unlikely to benefit from joint surgery in the first place, helping them avoid ineffective procedures, said Lundy.
“The most exciting opportunity from the continued progress of robotics and AI in surgery is the democratization of high-quality and high-value care across the country and ultimately across the world,” Ast said.
He continued: “AI has the ability to apply lessons learned in great detail across all patients…allowing all surgeons access to that knowledge level, raising the bar for us all and getting that high-quality data out to more patients.”
Newsweek and Statista recently published the ranking of America's Best Ambulatory Surgery Centers. See the full ranking here.