Tiny tracking sensor working inside the knees

As the U.S. population ages, the wear and tear of daily life on our joints grows, too. Now, some physicians are not only replacing knees but are using a new implant to see how well the new joints are working.

Knee replacement surgery swaps damaged bones with metal and plastic parts, which are now being improved with a tiny tracking sensor. The FDA just approved it.

Dr. Marc Hungerford demonstrated how it works.

“So, this is a sensor, okay? It’s not a tracker. It does not have any GPS information, doesn’t know where you are, or anything,” he said.

An orthopedic surgeon, he started using it on knee replacement patients in his practice at Mercy Medical Center.

“You do something, and you see how it went, and then you make a change, and you see if it helped,” he said.

The motion tracker records daily steps, functional range of motion, cadence and walking speed during activity. Transmitting that information while the patient sleeps.

“This is next to their bedside, and the sensor will wake up and transmit that motion information,” Hungerford said.

Furnishing real-time cloud data, accessible by physicians or patients, who can then compare their progress to others. That’s a positive step, according to Dr. Hungerford.

“They have comparatives, right? So, they have, ‘How am I doing compared to people my own age?’” he said.

The goal of the personal IQ sensor is to get to 100% patient compliance and improve quality of life.