At AAOS, A Debate Over Disc Replacement

In recent years, few technology areas in orthopedics have been hotter—or stimulated more debate—than spine, and at the head of the controversy is disc replacement. Indeed, the rich prices paid last year by Synthes-Stratec ($350 million for Spine Solutions Inc. [See Deal]) and Johnson & Johnson 's DePuy AcroMed Inc. division ($325 million for Link Spine Group Inc. [See Deal]), underscore how important disc replacement has become in a relatively short period of time. But like many technology bets, such enthusiasm comes before disc replacements have actually made it to the market, at least in the US. And as an early morning session at this year's American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (AAOS) meeting in San Francisco shows, it's far from clear how quickly this early enthusiasm will translate into widespread adoption. (See "Spine Arthroplasty's Next Generation," IN VIVO, April 2003 Also see "Spine Arthroplasty's Next Generation" - In Vivo, 1 April, 2003..)

Paul McAfee, MD, a spine surgeon from Towson, MD, argued for a wider adoption of disc replacement, specifically lumbar disc replacement, calling it "a new paradigm" in the treatment of...