Medtronic revealed today at the North American Spine Society (NASS) annual meeting the launch of several software, hardware, and imaging innovations.
 
The new products were designed to advance AiBLE, the company’s smart ecosystem of navigation, robotics, data and artificial intelligence (AI), imaging, software, and implants for spine and cranial procedures. Medtronic also announced a partnership with Siemens Healthineers to further expand access to advanced pre- and post-op imaging tech for spine care.
 
New advancements in the AiBLE ecosystem include:
 

1. O-arm 4.3 software, which provides advanced navigation volumes, dose reduction, and enhanced image confirmation. Medtronic said it now offers the industry’s longest 3D scan length for cone-beam CT images, enabling surgeons to captire additional spine levels in one scan. O-arm is the first, only intraoperative imager that uses AI.
2. UNiD Adaptive Spine Intelligence (ASI), an integrated software and service platform that uses AI and predictive models to help deliver patient-specific surgical plans and implants, now features MRI Vision, which integrates with CoLumbo from Smart Soft Healthcare into the UNiD workflow. The new tool leverage computer vision technology to automatically analyze lumbar MRIs to segment, label, and measure aspects related to common pathologies. Those using UNiD ASI can access automated PDF reports and annotated DICOMs (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) in the UNiD Hub to identify and quantitatively measure areas of interest like muscle area with fat infiltration, key spinal alignment angles, and key characteristics related to stenosis.
3. The Mazor robotic guidance system with 5.1 software, a spinal robotic system that integrates AI, bone cutting, and graft delivery. The newest software version debuts Maximum Intensity Projection (MIP), which Medtronic said supports improvement of image quality.
4. The ModuLeX spinal system, which provides more visualization of the surgical area while allowing creation of an optimized construct for the patient. ModuLeX is the next-gen of the company’s CD Horizon product family, a 40-year market leader in spinal fixation.

Partnership with Siemens Healthineers

The two companies plan to comarket Siemens Healthineers’ Multitom Rax imaging system and integrate it into Medtronic’s AiBLE ecosystem for spine surgery. Multitom Rax features standing, weight-bearing imaging, cone-beam CT, and supine X-ray capabilities.
 
The anticipated partnership aims to evolve AiBLE, which combines connected care and predictive technology for spinal surgery.
 
“Partnering with Siemens Healthineers advances our commitment to reduce variability and improve outcomes for spinal patients,” said Skip Kiil, president of Medtronic Cranial & Spinal Technologies. “We are thrilled with the prospect of working with the industry leader in imaging and to leverage the depth of imaging experience and expertise, commercial footprint, and shared commitment to data science to advance our AiBLE strategy and shared pursuit of better patient outcomes.”
 
“We are excited about the prospect of partnering with Medtronic to bring our solution to spine centers and empower spine surgeons and neurosurgeons to be more precise in the operating room,” added Verena Schoen, executive VP of X-ray Products at Siemens Healthineers. “Multitom Rax delivers geometrically accurate images which allows precise measurements of the patient’s vertebrae. Especially optimized for spine imaging, it not only contributes to faster diagnosis and treatment planning, but also to surgical execution and post-surgical control.”