Scholarly Article
We Need to Talk About the Robot in the Room: Orthopaedics
Mohammed, Zain, Khatri, Chetan, Searle, Henry, Metcalfe, Andrew, Davis, Edward
2025-11-30 · Impact Surgery · Impact Health Publishing Group
Abstract
Orthopaedics has grappled with robotics for three decades. One of its first major ventures, ROBODOC (Curexo Technology Corp, South Korea, 1992), was an 'active' robotic system designed to autonomously execute bone cuts required for arthroplasty. Concerns over safety, workflow, and a lack of intraoperative flexibility limited its widespread adoption. It was superseded by TSolution One (THINK Surgical, USA) in 2014, adding improved CT-based planning, enhanced registration, and safeguards against soft-tissue injury. It remains the only autonomous robotic system available today. Yet, whether robotics in orthopaedics ultimately offers improvements in clinical or cost effectiveness remains uncertain. Adoption has often outpaced evidence, and only now are large-scale RCTs, such as the RACER trials, underway to assess the value of robotics in arthroplasty.
Keywords
Robortics, Orthopaedics, Orthopedics, lower limb arthroplasty, technology, Surgical technique, Surgical Outcomes, Trials
Citation Details
Impact Surgery, No. 13, pp. 233-235