Theodore Blaine, MD, a shoulder and elbow surgeon at New York City-based Hospital for Special Surgery, has performed the world's first implantation of a stemmed elliptical head prosthesis for anatomic shoulder replacement surgery.
The procedure was performed in May at HSS' Stamford, Conn., location, according to a June 27 press release.
The elliptical-shaped head matches the anatomical shape of the ball-and-socket joint in the human shoulder, and the stemmed elliptical-shaped head enables surgeons to convert an anatomic total shoulder replacement prosthesis to a reverse shoulder replacement prosthesis.
The first procedures using elliptical head prostheses at HSS Stamford have had successful results, and the technology is now being used at several centers in the U.S.
"Up until now, we haven't had convertibility from a standard ball-and-socket prosthesis to a reverse prosthesis. The stemmed elliptical head prosthesis for anatomic replacement gives us the ability to make this conversion in a more expedient way without having to remove the stem," Dr. Blaine said in the release.