University Hospitals Expands Robotic Capabilities for Total Joint Replacement

Innovations in Orthopaedics | Fall 2023

With the addition of six new robots for total joint replacement, the Department of Orthopaedics at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center has significantly increased robotic-assisted capabilities at sites throughout Northeast Ohio.

The purchase of four Stryker Mako SmartRobotics™ systems and two DePuy Synthes VELYS™ Robotic-Assisted Solutions is part of a larger investment in the growth of orthopaedics at University Hospitals. Over the past year, UH Orthopaedics has hired physicians, added operating rooms, built clinical spaces and invested in technology more than ever before.

James Voos, MD

“This is the largest expansion of our orthopaedic service line in the history of our department,” says James Voos, MD, Chair of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and the Jack and Mary Herrick Distinguished Chair of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine at UH Cleveland Medical Center. “This expansion has modernized our delivery of orthopaedic care to meet the demands of today's busy lifestyles and has also allowed us to utilize technology that enables us to take safer and more efficient care of our patients.”

Recent UH Orthopaedics expansion has included:

• Opening of the 78,000-square-foot, multistory UH Drusinsky Sports Medicine Institute at UH Ahuja Medical Center
• Over 20 new operating rooms
• Over 50 new exam rooms
• Additions to UH Streetsboro and UH Mayfield Village Health Centers
• New sites in Beachwood and Mentor
• New Medical Office building and Ambulatory Surgery Center in Amherst
• Expansion of services at T3 Performance in Avon
• Investment in research infrastructure
• Advancements in Electronic Medical Record systems

Extending Regional Reach of Robotic Capabilities

Six University Hospitals medical centers are now offering robotic-assisted total joint replacement surgery. UH Elyria started the program with the purchase of a Stryker Mako robotic arm and is now joined by UH Geauga and UH St. John. UH Ahuja and UH Beachwood each have a Stryker Mako and DePuy VELYS robot.

Steven Fitzgerald,MD

Strategically placing robots throughout the system provides the community with streamlined access to care. “Patients are interested in the latest robotic procedures and request this technology,” says Steven Fitzgerald, MD, Chief of Adult Reconstruction and Director of High Reliability Medicine for Total Joint Replacement at UH Cleveland Medical Center. “University Hospitals is well-positioned to meet this demand.”

Customizable Precision

The decision to onboard robots with two distinct operating systems provides greater choice for surgeons and customization for patients. The Stryker Mako robot relies on pre-operative imaging, while the DePuy VELYS is an imageless system that collects real-time data in the operating room.

Breana Siljander, MD

“Because these machines are navigated in three dimensions, they bring more precision to the operating room than what we can replicate with our manual instruments,” says Breana Siljander, MD, the newly named Director of Robotic Surgery for Total Joint Replacement within the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at UH Cleveland Medical Center. “This region has a high clinical need for joint replacement, and we are committed to building a state-of-the-art robotics program that offers the most advanced technology to our patients.”

Attracting Top Surgeons

Increasingly, surgeons coming out of orthopaedic residencies and fellowships are seeking healthcare systems that offer the latest in technological advancements. The expansion of robotic-assisted total joint replacement at University Hospitals is helping to attract some of the best orthopaedic surgeons who come from the most prestigious fellowship programs in the country.

Mark McElroy, MD

Along with Dr. Siljander, orthopaedic surgeon Mark McElroy, MD, joined the faculty at University Hospitals this fall. A graduate of Harvard Medical School, Dr. McElroy completed a fellowship at the Mayo Clinic Florida and has expertise in robotic- and computer-assisted hip and knee replacement.

“We want to ensure that our newly recruited surgeons who are experienced with these leading-edge technologies have the most advanced tools available to them at University Hospitals,” says Dr. Fitzgerald. “Total joint replacement is a rapidly evolving specialty, and robotics will remain a part of that evolution.”

For more information about robotic-assisted total joint replacement at University Hospitals, please call 440-482-7633.

Contributing Experts:  

James Voos, MD 
Chair, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery 
Jack and Mary Herrick Distinguished Chair
Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine  
University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center 
Charles H. Herndon Professor and Chair of Orthopaedics
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine 
Head Team Physician, Cleveland Browns 
Medical Director, Cleveland Ballet 

Steven Fitzgerald, MD
Chief, Division of Adult Reconstruction
Director, High Reliability Medicine for Total Joint Replacement
University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center 
Assistant Professor
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine

Breana Siljander, MD
Director of Robotic Surgery, Total Joint Replacement
Department of Orthopaedic Surgery
University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center
Assistant Professor
Orthopaedic Surgery
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Biomedical Engineering
Case School of Engineering