Charles C. Jones Seminar - N.A. - (Hanover, NH)

ABSTRACT -Expenditures on orthopedic conditions related to joint pain and arthritis are increasing at a rate 4 times that of the US economy. The resulting regulatory and reimbursement pressures to contain costs while improving value are fundamentally changing healthcare for the more than 1 million patients receiving an artificial joint every year. Value cannot be addressed by changing medical practice alone, particularly as the eligible patient population grows in number, increases in body mass index, and decreases in age. Considering the entire care pathway for a knee or hip replacement (i.e. from the election of surgery through completion of rehabilitation), the implanted device may account for over 20% of the total cost, and postoperative physical therapy may account for another 10% of the total cost. Each of these is heavily influenced by underlying engineering in the design of the device and the biomechanics associated with rehabilitation.