CLEVELAND — University Hospitals Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital has made history as the first in the world to use the Pulse platform to perform pediatric spine surgery.
UH officials confirmed the news in a statement Thursday morning, saying the advanced technology was used to complete a posterior spinal fusion on a 12-year-old girl with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis.
Here’s how UH describes the process:
The Pulse platform is designed to increase safety, efficiency and procedural reproducibility of surgical outcomes in spine surgery. In a single platform, it integrates radiation reduction, imaging enhancement, rod bending, navigation, intraoperative neuromonitoring and spinal alignment tools. It is currently the only enabling technology with the ability for utilization in 100% of spine procedures and throughout the entire operating room (OR) workflow. With multiple modalities easily accessible in one platform, Pulse helps surgeons address some of the most common clinical challenges in spine surgery, such as radiation exposure, nerve and spinal cord injury and time spent in the OR.
“We are thrilled to offer this remarkable new technology to our patients, as navigational platforms like Pulse are truly the future of surgery,” says Dr. Michael Glotzbecker, who is also the George H. Thompson Distinguished Chair in Pediatric Orthopaedics and an Associate Professor, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.
UH says the availability and interconnectivity of multiple spine technologies in the Pulse platform enhances a surgeon’s capabilities and enables the adoption of less invasive and more advanced surgical procedures. Adoption of less invasive surgery may lead to:
- Reduced OR time by up to 60 minutes
- Savings of nearly $5,000 per patient in hospital costs
- Reduced time under anesthesia and lower intraoperative risks
- Reduced length of stay in the hospital
“As surgeons patient safety is our priority, and we are constantly looking to the latest, cutting-edge technology to enhance all areas of patient safety in the OR,” says Dr. Glotzbecker. “We chose Pulse because of its impressive intraoperative imaging and navigation, combined with radiation reducing techniques that helps us provide the best outcomes for the children and young adults we care for each day.”
The Pulse platform is developed by NuVasive, the largest spine-focused technology company in the world.
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Editor's note: Video in the player above was originally published in an unrelated story on June 2, 2022.
