Joplin, MO – A technological milestone was recently achieved by Freeman Health System Neurosurgeon Dr. Joshua Sweaney and his team as they marked the 100th successful spine surgery using Medtronic’s revolutionary Mazor™ robotic guidance platform.

Freeman was one of the first hospitals in the Four State region offering this advanced surgical system to its patients, combining 3D pre-operative planning software with robotic-guided execution to assist with complex spine surgeries. 

“I couldn’t be prouder of my team,” Dr. Sweaney said. "Freeman has always been on the forefront of pushing forward with technology."

The 100th successful spine surgical case, which took place in late July, was a fusion procedure involving the insertion of screws into a patient’s lumbar spine to provide stability and pain relief. 

Mazor™ makes it more efficient and intuitive for Dr. Sweaney to plan and execute spinal surgical procedures, whether it’s a spinal fusion procedure or a mobility-preserving operation using a Total Posterior Spine System (TOPS™) mechanical device. 

Mazor™, designed for spine surgery, offers numerous benefits:

• Surgical Plans: Physicians create a personalized surgical plan for patients before entering the operating room, which can be described as GPS navigation for the spine, enhancing precision of complex spine procedures.

• Improved Implant Accuracy: The robot ensures precise placement of spinal instrumentation, improving safety and outcomes. Studies show clinically acceptable placement rates of approximately 98% to 99.2%.

• Reduced Surgery Time and Length of Stay: The technology streamlines surgical procedures, leading to shorter operative times and reduced recovery periods.

“In spine surgery, accuracy is paramount,” Dr. Sweaney said. “You want the screws in the exact places where you need them to be. [Mazor™] has allowed us to do the types of things that in the not-so-distant past we would not have been able to do with the kind of safety and execution we can do now. It's a great tool, but it's still a tool, and a tool is only as good as how you use it. But it’s really pushed us forward.”

The Mazor™ Robotic Guidance System makes it more efficient and intuitive for Freeman neurosurgeons to plan and execute spinal surgical procedures. Robotic pre-planning software allows them to fully map each patient’s anatomy in 3D before they even step inside the operating room. Mazor™ technology is merged with the Premia TOPS™ implant, which provides a non-fusion alternative to traditional spinal fusion surgery. The latter is an articulating mechanism held between two titanium plates and secured by precisely placed pedicle screws. Working in unison, Mazor™ uses stealth navigation and precise robotic guidance to accurately place the TOPS™ implant during spinal surgery, directly leading to construct accuracy, faster recovery times, less exposure to imaging radiation and better outcomes for Freeman patients.

Patients are traveling from more populated metro areas—such as Kansas City—and bypassing larger hospital systems to undergo surgery in Joplin by Freeman neurosurgeons due to the Mazor™/TOPS™ procedure. Dr. Sweaney said one of his patients made a nearly six-hour trek to Joplin from central Iowa. 

“It’s been steady,” Dr. Sweaney said about his surgeries. 

Dr. Sweaney’s Freeman team consists of: Intraoperative Monitoring Technician Austin Wilson; Christine Grimes, CRNA; Kaylee Young, NP; Patri Rawlins, CST; Heather Garrow, RN; and Medtronic employees David Edgerton, Madison Mathison, and Kylee Westrip. 

 “At this point it’s pretty exciting times,” added Medtronic’s Edgerton. 

The next-generation Mazor™ robotic system—called Stealth AXiS™—could soon be coming its way to Freeman Health System. The platform unites Artificial Intelligence-driven planning, navigation and robotics together into a single, integrated system. 

“It’s all about how can we make the patient outcome better? What studies show and what we’ve found is the more predictable and repeatable you can make your surgeries, obviously the more predictable and repeatable positive outcomes are,” said Medtronic’s Mathison. “So, the precision that Dr. Sweaney is able to execute during his partnership with Mazor™, at the end of the day, it’s driving better patient outcomes.”