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SmartTRAK Life Sciences News and Analysis Blog

3 min read

CytexOrtho: Regenerative Medicine Solutions for Osteoarthritis

By Emily Meng on 5/6/25 10:17 AM

SmartTRAK spotlights CytexOrtho, the AAOS 2024 OrthoPitch winner, as it develops its biodegradable implant to address early joint degeneration. 

In this interview with SmartTRAK, CytexOrtho CEO Brad Estes, PhD, discusses the company’s cartilage repair implant, ReNewHip, an engineered bicomponent implant used for cartilage regeneration.

To find out more about CytexOrtho and its technology, click the image below to watch the video (26:37 min). A link to download a transcript of the interview is also provided below.

 

SmartTRAK: Hi, this is Emily Meng with SmartTrak. Today I'm here with CytexOrtho CEO Brad Estes. Thanks, Brad, for joining me today.

Bradley Estes: Yeah, I'm happy to be here. Thanks for having me.

So, we'll just jump in and start asking you some questions. Let’s start with can you tell me about yourself and your background and how you got started with CytexOrtho.

BE: Yeah, it was kind of a circuitous route to get here. I started my career in the Medtech industry with Sofamor Danek, which was eventually acquired by Medtronic, and kind of did a lot of R&D in the heyday of spine, I like to say it, and was even on the team that did BMP-2. So that was a lot of fun seeing the role of a biologic in orthopedics and what that could really do to change the way patients are treated. And so I spent about eight years in Medtronic and then I left industry, came to academia, did a PhD at Duke and kind of retooled and learned the molecular biology, the stem cell biology, the tissue engineering and just kind of gained a whole new skill set. I got to work with some really great people and that kind of set us off on our journey of where we are today and kind of tie in some product development experience with science and having the right time and the right people and the right funding to push forward with CytexOrtho. And I'm sure I caused more questions in that response than answered, but I'm happy to fill in the gaps, too.

Can you tell us a little bit about CytexOrtho and what you guys are doing, and specifically, I guess, for ReNew Hip, since that's your product that is under development.

BE: So, our goal from the beginning has been to treat that patient that currently has no solutions. I'm talking the patient in their 30s, 40s or 50s that have early-stage hip disease, but they have no solutions right now. Their plight is kind of sad if you think about it. They go see their doctor, they have some hip pain, they're starting to not be able to do the things they want to do. And so, they take some ibuprofen, do some PT, and let's come back and see me in a year and that progresses for about seven or eight years typically. That's what our data tells us. That patient is just living with more chronic pain and increasing disability over that eight years until finally they can't take it anymore and then they replace their hip. And so, our technology is ...

Click the button below to download the complete transcript of our interview with Brad Estes, CEO of CytexOrtho, conducted by  SmartTRAK analyst Emily Meng.Download the Transcript
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2 min read

Clinical Evidence Poised to Redefine the Bone Replacement Market in 2025 and Beyond

By Erin Dorgan on 4/29/25 9:10 AM

SmartTRAK discusses key products and compelling clinical evidence that may impact the Bone Replacement Market in 2025 and beyond.

SmartTRAK looks at what’s on the horizon in 2025 and beyond and highlights the innovation and product advances that could shake up the US Market for Bone Replacement, which is projected to reach a 5-year CAGR of +3.8% by 2028. In this article, SmartTRAK details the recent growth factors/peptides bone grafts that received the FDA’s Breakthrough Device Designation (BDD) and significant milestones in product development in 2024. It also discusses new clinical evidence challenging the belief that autologous bone is the most efficacious graft material.

Curious which companies and products are making waves? This downloadable market outlook article covers, among others:

  • Cerapedics' investigational P-15 Peptide Enhanced Bone Graft
  • Medtronic’s Infuse bone graft
  • Theradaptive's OsteoAdapt SP bone graft
  • Bone Biologics' NB1 bone graft
  • Locate Bio's LDGraft bone graft 
  • Renovos' Renovite BMP-2 bone graft 
  • CBBio's NOVOSIS Putty
  • Amphix Bio's  drug-device combination product for bone regeneration
  • Kuros Biosciences' MagnetOs Granules bone graft

With new growth factor/peptides bone grafts progressing with their timelines to the market and clinical data demonstrating superiority over autograft, the Bone Replacement market is primed to grow in 2025 and the coming years.

Click the button below to download and read the complete "Clinical Evidence Poised to Redefine the Bone Replacement Market in 2025 and Beyond" Market Outlook article by SmartTRAK Erin Dorgan, Sr Analyst.Get the Article

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3 min read

Innovation On Display at the 2nd Annual AAOS OrthoPitch

By Elise Wolf on 4/15/25 9:30 AM

SmartTRAK highlights AAOS’ OrthoPitch 2025 finalists.

Innovation has always been a key growth driver in orthopedics and startups have been responsible for some of the most novel and innovative orthopedic products ever to reach the market. At the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) 2025 Annual Meeting in San Diego, orthopedic startups were in the spotlight in the second annual OrthoPitch event, a Shark Tank-like competition sponsored, in part, by SmartTRAK.

Forty companies applied, but only four reached the finals and made their pitches at the event. In this article, SmartTRAK highlights the companies and technologies that made it to the OrthoPitch finals and announces the winner of the competition.

The finalists were:

  • VISIE
    • VISIE, formerly known as Advanced Scanners, is a medtech startup located in Austin, TX. The company has developed proprietary hardware and software that ... (read more)
  • 16 Bit
    • 16 Bit is a radiologist-founded medical technology company, located in Toronto, Ontario, focused on creating ... (read more)
  • Auctus Surgical
    • California-based Auctus Surgical has developed a flexible tether implant designed for ... (read more)
  • SentryX
    • SentryX, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company founded as a spin-out of the University Medical Center Utrecht in The Netherlands, has developed ... (read more)

SmartTRAK is proud to sponsor events such as OrthoPitch that foster an environment of innovation in orthopedics. We congratulate Visie, 16 Bit, Auctus Surgical and SentryX on making it to the final round.

AND THE WINNER IS ...

Click the button below to read more about each company's innovation and to find out who won the second annual OrthoPitch at AAOS 2025.Get the Article


SmartTRAK is the Medtech industry’s only global Insights-as-a-Service solution for the Orthopedics, Wound Care, Regenerative Medicine and Neuro Therapy markets.  SmartTRAK’s propriety methodology turns disparate data from hundreds of sources into powerful insights customers can rely on as the trusted source for strategic decision-making. The  SmartTRAK enterprise platform includes rich daily updates, comprehensive market coverage and simple-to-use tools and dashboards for market, product and financial analysis. Customers leveraging the  SmartTRAK platform also have direct access to market experts for inquiries and advisory services. If you would like a demo of what  SmartTRAK has to offer and see how we can help increase proficiency, improve productivity and reduce costs for your company, just click  here

 

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3 min read

Joint Restoration and Preservation: The CG MSK & AAOS 2025 Playbill

By Kim French on 4/9/25 11:19 AM

Soft tissue and cartilage repair trends and innovations take center stage.

Joint restoration and preservation continued to gain attention at this year’s Canaccord Genuity (CG) Musculoskeletal (MSK) Healthcare Conference and at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons' (AAOS) 2025 Annual Meeting, both in San Diego. From start-ups reporting early results and seeking investors to large companies showcasing recently acquired assets or newly launched products, the meetings were abuzz with companies and healthcare providers aspiring to help patients heal more naturally, restore an active lifestyle and delay joint replacement surgery.

In this market perspective article, SmartTRAK covers everyone from powerhouse names like Smith+Nephew and Stryker to dynamic start-ups, like CytexOrtho, Nanochon and Hyalex Orthopaedics. Their focus was clear: help the body heal naturally and preserve movement for as long as possible.

Below is a preview of the full article. The complete Market Perspective is available for download.

       Download the Complete Joint Restoration and Preservation Article

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3 min read

Enthesis Reformation and the Science of Bone-to-Tendon Healing

By Andy Knapik on 3/26/25 9:25 AM

SmartTRAK spotlights Tetrous in an interview at AAOS 2025 in San Diego. 

Andy Carter, Chief Technology Officer and Founder of Tetrous, discusses the company’s novel approach to addressing Enthesis Failure Syndrome in an interview with SmartTRAK at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) 2025 Annual Meeting in San Diego. 

To learn more about Tetrous and its novel technology, listen to the following video. (21:42 min.) A link to download the transcript of the interview is also provided below. 

 

Hey everybody, it's Andy Knapik, live here at AAOS 2025 in San Diego. Today I'm joined here with a friend, colleague, and someone I've known now for, I guess a couple years, Andy Carter, Founder, Chief Technology Officer of a company called Tetrous, which is really some exciting biologic technology. So I just brought him along. We're going to chat a little bit about it. So Andy, why don't you just tell everybody what it is about Tetrous and what you guys do and why it's so great.

Andy Carter: Thanks for the opportunity. It's a great topic to talk about and I really, really love it. So we started Tetrous a couple of years ago. We spun it out of Theracell, the company that we sold to, ISTO Biologics. They're doing great and taking the technology in the spine and doing various things. But along the way, I read quite a few papers about how demineralized bone matrix materials could influence enthesis repair. And that's getting back to sports medicine, which is my roots and well, my real passion. I looked at these papers and they basically showed that demineralized bone matrix materials could influence the enthesis to heal. A tendon, the enthesis, is the bit between the tendon and the bone. It's the junction. It's how you get load transfer between rigid bone and flexible tendon. It's a biological structure that's very exquisite and unique. You look at the histology and the biologists go into raptures and "wows" about it and whatever.

The fundamentals are that you've got collagen fibers going from the bone through into the tendon. That's what gives you the strength. You see them in the histology with Sharpey's fibers. If you just reattach tendon to bone, you just get scar tissue. Scar tissue is not as strong. Basically, it pulls out and thins and fails with time. So part of the reason that we see so many problems with rotator cuff repair is that nobody's doing anything to heal the enthesis. There was this literature out there saying, ‘Hey, you can use DBM for this,’ but none of the papers showed it in any way that was something that you could see a surgeon being able to use-

Right, a practical form.

AC: There's one group, guys I know very well had used DBM powder. Now DBM powder, you can do it in a rat study and show that it works, but that's not a product. So what we were able to do, one of the clever things about the technology that we developed at Theracell, the fiber technology is, it allows us to ....

Click the button below to download and read the complete transcript of SmartTRAK's interview with Andy Carter, founder and CTO of Tetrous, conducted by Andy Knapik, SmartTRAK Senior Analyst, Soft Tissue Fixation and Arthroscopic Enabling Technologies.Download the Transcript


SmartTRAK is the Medtech industry’s only global Insights-as-a-Service solution for the Orthopedics, Wound Care, Regenerative Medicine and Neuro Therapy markets. SmartTRAK’s propriety methodology turns disparate data from hundreds of sources into powerful insights customers can rely on as the trusted source for strategic decision-making. The SmartTRAK enterprise platform includes rich daily updates, comprehensive market coverage and simple-to-use tools and dashboards for market, product and financial analysis. Customers leveraging the SmartTRAK platform also have direct access to market experts for inquiries and advisory services. If you would like a demo of what SmartTRAK has to offer and see how we can help increase proficiency, improve productivity and reduce costs for your company, just click here.

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2 min read

Spine Market Shake-Up: Trends, Drivers and What’s Next

By Elise Wolf on 3/18/25 9:30 AM

SmartTRAK delves into recent spinal implant divestitures.

The global Spinal Implant Market has seen an increasing number of divestitures in recent years. Large strategics are streamlining their portfolios, while private equity firms and specialized manufacturers are capitalizing on the opportunity to acquire divested assets. In this article, SmartTRAK explores the key drivers behind these divestitures, notable transactions and the broader implications for the industry, including:

  • Recent Divestitures from Key Players
    • In January, Stryker (SYK) announced a definitive agreement to sell its US spinal implants business to the Viscogliosi Brothers (VB), a New York-based investment firm focused on neuro and musculoskeletal technologies. VB Spine is set to become ... (read more)
  • Why the Shake-ups? 
    • The Spine Hardware Market is characterized as a very SKU-heavy business with little differentiation among implants, making it expensive and requiring savvy and specialized operations to ensure profitability. Market-leading strategics, Medtronic (MDT) and Globus (GMED) are acquiring ... (read more)
  • Focus on Interventional Market
    • With ZBH and SYK exiting the spinal fusion space altogether, other companies are targeting adjacent high-growth markets, where there is a much larger population of chronic low back pain (CLBP) patients to treat in lieu of fusion. Post divestiture, SYK will retain ... (read more)
  • Continued Evolution Expected
    • Consolidation and specialization in the Spine Market could lead to improved product quality, better integration of new technologies and enhanced patient outcomes. SmartTRAK expects the Spine Market 
      will ...(read more)

Curious about the latest transactions and trends in the Spine Market and the broader implications for the industry? Click the button below to download the complete market outlook article, "Spine Market Shake-Up: Trends, Drivers and What’s Next" by Elise Wolf, SmartTRAK VP& GM, Orthopedics & Quality.Get the Article


SmartTRAK is the Medtech industry’s only global Insights-as-a-Service solution for the Orthopedics, Wound Care, Regenerative Medicine and Neuro Therapy markets. SmartTRAK’s propriety methodology turns disparate data from hundreds of sources into powerful insights customers can rely on as the trusted source for strategic decision-making. The SmartTRAK enterprise platform includes rich daily updates, comprehensive market coverage and simple-to-use tools and dashboards for market, product and financial analysis. Customers leveraging the SmartTRAK platform also have direct access to market experts for inquiries and advisory services. If you would like a demo of what SmartTRAK has to offer and see how we can help increase proficiency, improve productivity and reduce costs for your company, just click here.
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3 min read

CG 2025 Musculoskeletal Conference: Spotlight on Doron Therapeutics

By Sharon O'Reilly on 3/11/25 11:40 AM

SmartTRAK spotlights Doron Therapeutics in an interview with CEO Alessandra Pavesio at CG 2025 Musculoskeletal Conference in San Diego. 

Alessandra Pavesio, CEO of Doron Therapeutics, discusses the company, recent milestones and MOTYS, the company’s placental-derived injectable therapeutic for osteoarthritis, in an interview with   SmartTRAK  at the Canaccord Genuity (CG) 2025 Musculoskeletal Conference in San Diego, March 10, 2025.

To find out more, watch the following video (4:27 min). A link to a transcript of the interview is also provided below. 


SmartTRAK: Hi, this is Sharon O'Reilly. I'm at the Canaccord Conference before the 2025 AAOS, and I ran into Alessandra Pavesio, who's so excited about her company, Doron Therapeutics.

So, Alessandra, why don't you tell us a little bit about the company and some of the exciting new developments.

Alessandra Pavesio: It's always great to see you, Sharon. I love bumping into you and having some really good news to deliver. First of all, what is Doron Therapeutics? It's a management-led spin-off. We really were passionate about a technology that we've developed with Bioventus, and when Bioventus divested from this program for financial considerations, we were able to negotiate a very favorable deal to actually set up a spin-off company and go raise private capital to invest in the program.

The good news is that, yes, we've set up a company. Yes, we have raised private capital. And so now we are really up and running and getting ready to start a Phase III study.

Big milestone that we've accomplished is that we've been recognized by FDA as an RMAT therapy. RMAT means Regenerative Medicine Advanced Therapy. As such, that means attention from senior officials at FDA that are really partnering with you to get this product to market for the patients that we serve. Super excited.

SmartTRAK: Tell us about the product.

AP: So our lead program is called MOTYS. It's placental-derived injectable therapeutic. It's a biological drug that ...

Click the button below to download and read the complete transcript of SmartTRAK's interview with Doron Therpeutics' CEO Alessandro Pavesio, conducted by Sharon O'Reilly, SmartTRAK Founder and CEO.Download the Transcript

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2 min read

Bone Replacement Trends for 2025

By Erin Dorgan on 3/10/25 2:54 PM

SmartTRAK will be attending AAOS 2025 this week. Join us at AAOS to explore our solution and discuss our roadmap for expanding into other orthopedic markets. Learn more about our Brand Tracker here or schedule time to Meet with Us at the show!

Topics: Orthopedics
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3 min read

Joint Replacement Trends to Watch in 2025

By Lisa Mahan on 2/4/25 9:30 AM

SmartTRAK discusses market trends, including future potential market disrupters.

The FY24E US Total Joints Market is expected to increase +4.3% YoY from FY23; compared to 2023, with growth of +8.0%, the US Total Joints Market is still performing above 2019 pre-COVID levels. SmartTRAK projects this trend will continue in 2025, with the market expected to increase +3.7% from FY24E. With the backlog of procedures from the pandemic appearing to be reduced, SmartTRAK looks at other trends to watch in 2025, including:

  •  Joint Replacement Procedures Continue Migrating to the ASC Setting
    • In 2023, SmartTRAK estimated that approximately 10% of all US hip and knee replacement procedures were performed in an ambulatory surgery center (ASC) setting. This trend shows no signs of slowing down. Based on recent procedure trends data, SmartTRAK projects ... (read more)
    • While procedure volumes at ASCs have risen, Medicare reimbursement rates continue to drop. SmartTRAK tracking of Medicare surgeon reimbursement shows ... (read more)
  • Technology Trends: Streamlining, Personalization, Outcomes
    • Technology trends carrying over from 2024 include streamlining, personalization and outcomes. Some of the new products launching in 2025 are ... (read more)
  • Potentially Disruptive Orthobiologic Therapies Coming to Market
    • New Orthobiologic injection therapies aim to better manage symptoms and modify disease progression in osteoarthritis (OA) patients. SmartTRAK feels this is ... (read more)
  • Eight New Therapies on the Horizon That Could Impact Joint Replacement
    • Delaying surgeries by managing symptoms and  ... (read more)
    • Reducing the number of joint replacements performed: Advanced OA injectable therapies that more effectively target pain management could result in ... (read more)

Curious about the latest trends in the joint replacement market for 2025?    Click below to read her comprehensive market outlook article "Joint Replacement Trends to Watch in 2025" by Lisa Mahan, SmartTRAK's VP of Product Development & IT, Sr. Analyst Total Joints.Get the Article

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4 min read

SmartTRAK's Top Blog Posts of 2024

By Thomas Wallick on 1/21/25 9:30 AM

In 2024, SmartTRAK continued to empower you to Be The Expert in the MedTech industry. As your trusted resource for up-to-date industry insights, we delivered real-time market data, analysis and actionable insights across the orthopedics, wound care, regenerative medicine and neurotherapy markets. Here are SmartTRAK's Top Blog Posts from 2024, offering valuable perspectives from our expert analysts.

  1. Skin Substitute Market Rocked by DOJ Investigations
    SmartTRAK believes the billions of dollars of Medicare abuse already uncovered is the tip of the iceberg in services billed to Medicare via the Physician Fee Schedule.

  2. Medtronic: Making Waves At NANS 2024
    Medtronic executives discuss how the company is making waves in interventional pain, minimally invasive spine and deep brain stimulation in an interview with SmartTRAK at NANS 2024.

  3. Spine Market Movers to Watch in 2024
    SmartTRAK highlights companies to watch as they continue their double-digit growth train with multiple catalysts for expansion in 2024.

    Request a Demo of the SmartTRAK Business Intelligence Platform

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