In orthopaedic surgery, there is the well-recognized relation between accuracy and outcome. Well-aligned knee or hip replacement will last longer. This achieved by CAS. It is computer’s feedback combined with surgeon’s judgment to perform a task better than either machine or human alone. Computer-assisted surgery is just developing, and there is certainly not enough known about CAS to say that it will lead to better results than standard surgical procedures.
CAS has been shown to make it less likely that limb alignment problems will occur after knee replacement surgery, but the computer models do not eliminate the chance of these errors being made. Furthermore, computer modeling does not take into account the soft tissues around the joint, which are as critical as the bone-alignment of the extremity. Therefore, current CAS only address a part of the problem of implant alignment.
CAS is an interesting development, but it is just that at this point. Efforts are being made to develop computer models that also take into account the soft tissues around the joint, so that a joint replacement implant can be as accurately placed as possible.