Orthopedic medtech has seen a busy year so far in 2025. Here are three key trends to know.
Medtech transactions
Medtech acquisitions have been prominent in 2025. Three of the biggest deals focused on spine. In April investment firm Viscogliosi Brothers completed its acquisition of Stryker’s U.S. spine business; Globus Medical completed its acquisition of Nevero, and in July Xtant Medical sold certain Coflex and CoFix spinal implants and all OUS entities of Paradigm Spine GmbH to Companion Spine.
Stryker’s decision to sell its U.S. spine business was over performance challenges, and Xtant Medical sold its Coflex and CoFix lines as the company pivots to orthobiologics.
Other orthopedic acquisitions in 2025 include Zimmer Biomet’s purchase of Paragon 28 and Medacta’s buy of Parcus Medical.
Tariffs
Tariffs were a top priority for spine and orthopedic medtech leaders in the first half of the year. Stryker CFO Preston Wells said Stryker would absorb the impact of tariffs, an estimated $200 million cost in 2025. The impact on margin will likely affect margins in the second half of the year, but Stryker has mitigation factors addressing tariffs.
But for Globus Medical, tariffs weren’t a major headwind, CEO Keith Pfeil said. He said that most of the company’s business was vertically integrated and predominantly U.S.-based, minimizing exposure to tariffs. However temporary supply chain issues did affect the company’s first quarter earnings.
Other companies including Orthofix and Zimmer Biomet have also expected tariff impacts into the double-digit millions.
Robotic innovation
Several orthopedic robots have cleared FDA milestones and made their debuts including Velys Spine, Monogram mBôs and Dynamis.
Looking ahead, spine surgeons expect these robotic technologies to expand their current capabilities.
“I think a lot of people regard the robotic arm as a ‘one trick pony’ because it’s designed to do pedicle screws, but not a whole lot more,” Peter Miller, MD, PhD, said. “I think as things progress, we’re going to see more applications of this technology. For those surgeons, who are early adopters of the robotic arm, I feel like the skill set will be there. Then as things develop with the software and with hardware we’re going to be able to do many more applications of using the robotic arm that will help with different types of cases.”
