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New hip replacement equipment at Black Hills Surgical Hospital mimics the human body to restore patients’ mobility and stability.

The Insignia hip stem was introduced about a month ago at BHSH, and as of Thursday, 30 patients have successfully received the hip stem.

“We are super excited to get the stem,” said Dr. Jeff Marrs, director of BHSH’s Hip and Knee Center. “I love the design. I think it’s the best one out there.

“It best allows us to precisely match patients’ anatomy … so the overall architecture of the hip is more consistent with (a patient’s) God-given anatomy,” said Marrs, who has implanted 16 Insignia hip stems so far.

Marrs calls the Insignia hip stem a “next generation” stem. It was developed by Stryker, one of the world's leading medical technology companies. The Insignia hip stem was created by using 3D CT-based scanning to replicate patients’ natural biomechanics, meaning the hip stem is designed to be better fitting and to preserve the bone. Because the equipment mimics human anatomy, the patient’s hip joint is more stable and performs more naturally.

CT scans combine data from several X-rays to produce a detailed image of structures inside the body. The Insignia hip stem is unique because it is designed based on CT scans of multiple human bodies of varying heights, genders and ethnicity, Marrs said.

Marrs said the primary purpose of the Insignia hip stem is to give surgeons something to which they can attach a new prosthetic ball and socket. In addition to mirroring human anatomy, the Insignia hip stem is easier on the patient’s bones.

“We want a stem shape that fills the femur so it doesn’t come loose and the bone can grow to it,” he said. “We don’t want to push too hard on the bone. This particular stem allows for very secure fixation but it’s kind of gentle on the bone.”

“This Stryker orthopedic modeling analytics system is what was used to design this stem. To my knowledge, there isn’t any other company on the market that has that,” Marrs said.

Last year, Marrs helped launch the BHSH total joint robotics program. The hospital introduced Mako technology, which uses CT scans to produce a 3D image and map of the patient’s anatomy. The technology allows surgeons to see a patient’s anatomy beyond what they could from X-rays and during surgery. The robotics allows a surgeon to take a CT scan of the patient’s anatomy before surgery and that data is loaded into the robot, Marrs said.

“During surgery, the robotics takes what we’re seeing (in the patient’s body) and maps that to the CT data so it makes sure we have them exactly matched,” Marrs said. “The robotics is a degree of enhancement to give us more information and more control. It gives us a better idea of where we’re cutting and how to produce a precise cut.”

Together, the robotics and Insignia hip stem allow surgeons to have greater precision in surgery while implanting a hip stem that will function more like the patient’s own body.

By the year 2030, total hip replacements in the United States are projected to grow 171%. The total joint care at BHSH is currently ranked among the top 10 hospitals in the nation for orthopedic care. That ranking is based on government-reported HCAHPS data, which measures patients’ perspectives about their medical care and hospital experience.

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