Funded by NIH, Grant No.: 1R43AR053791-01
Patent No.: US 7,610,080

The Need

More complications occur as a result of knee ligament surgery than of any other common surgical procedure. Long-term success rates of ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) reconstruction range only between 75 and 90%, mostly due to the difficulty of setting a proper tension on knee ligaments.

The Idea

CW Optics proposes a noninvasive device to measure the Raman spectrum of ligaments and tendons. Such measurements will allow surgeons to readily adjust the ligaments to the correct tension the first time around.

The Science

Ligament tension is vital to restoring normal movement to the knee. If the tension is too high, range of motion of the knee joint is restricted, and if it is too low, the joint is wobbly. Raman spectrometry has been demonstrated to measure the vibrational frequencies of collagen found in various tissues. CW Optics' innovative device offers routine, continuous, and real-time monitoring of patients undergoing ligament repair and replacement procedures.

The Bottom Line

With over 200,000 total knee replacements, it is no wonder that the value of the knee implant market was more than $2.4 billion in 2001. CW Optics' device would not only aid in total knee replacement surgery, but could also be useful in the over 50,000 ACL reconstruction surgeries that take place in the U.S. each year. By allowing to set a correct ligament tension, knee surgery may become more successful in the future.