The popularity of direct anterior approach THA is driving new product introductions.
With the exploding growth of enabling technology, much of the focus on implant solutions in recent years has been on knee replacement systems compatible with enabling technologies. At the same time, minimally invasive techniques for hip replacement using the direct anterior approach (DAA) have rapidly been gaining favor among surgeons. More companies are designing implant solutions to facilitate DAA, for use with and without enabling technologies. At this year’s American Association of Hip and Knee Surgeons (AAHKS) Annual Meeting, manufacturers were showcasing not one, but four new hip systems specifically designed to facilitate the direct anterior approach. Because surgeon adoption of this technique appears to be accelerating, it is potentially a significant opportunity for implant companies. In a 2022 survey of its members, AAHKS found that DAA was the most utilized for primary total hip arthroplasty THA (56%), a significant increase from 2018 when 40% of AAHKS surgeons indicated they used an anterior approach.
The introduction of these new stems almost plays out like a David vs Goliath story with two smaller US market players, NextStep Arthropedix and Corin, facing two of the four largest, Zimmer Biomet and Smith+Nephew. In this downloadable article, SmartTRAK looks at these new stems hitting the US market, including a brief history of the stems, their features and benefits, and the market positioning for each.
Recent patent applications reveal an industry focus on developing acetabular solutions
