VIRGINIA BEACH — Orthopaedic patients at the Atlantic Orthopaedic Specialists office here are the first in the state to experience a weight-bearing, or standing CT scan.
Typically, an orthopedic surgeon would send their patient to a hospital where they’d lay down in a machine for a CT scan, but having a standing CT scan makes such a significant difference some doctors at AOS even sent patients to North Carolina or Washington, D.C. to use the LineUP CBCT multi-extremity scanner.
Now, it’s right here in their Kempsville office.
In June staff at the orthopedic specialty office completed training and patients are able to accomplish standing CT scans “dramatically increasing the precision” of knee, foot, or ankle surgery said Dr. Michael Campbell an orthopedic surgeon and fellowship-trained foot and ankle specialist at AOS.
“This device allows us to see exactly what the foot is doing when a patient is standing or putting weight on it,” he said.
Campbell compared using an X-Ray with trying to see the lines on a football field on a low-resolution TV — the LineUP CBCT scanner gives the surgeon a high-definition view of deformities with its computer-generated 3D images, allowing doctors “to more accurately form a plan for treatment.”
Specifically for bunion correction, Campbell said the machine “accurately analyzes” what we used to think was a cosmetic issue but now know is a “multiplanar deformity that can’t be measured by x-ray.”
“Surgery after seeing what the foot is doing on a weight-bearing CT scan will decrease the reoccurrence of a bunion,” he said.
And, the machine’s company, CurveBeam, also produces anatomically accurate 3D printed templates, or cutting guides, for patients needing a total ankle replacement “increasing the accuracy and speed of surgery,” Campbell said.
According to a news release, an added benefit for patients is less exposure to CT radiation and, Campbell said, those 3D images and models “blow their minds to see.”
