Every year, hundreds of thousands of people in the U.S. undergo life-changing knee replacement surgeries. These procedures, while meant to restore mobility and ease chronic pain, can lead to a postoperative battle with infections, particularly those surrounding metal implants. These infections remain one of the most serious and urgent complications.
Traditionally, treatment involves invasive revision surgery, cutting out the infected implant, removing affected bone, and hoping there’s still enough healthy tissue left to work with. In the worst cases, it means amputation.
But what if there were a medical device that could fight infection without the need for a knife?
Imagine a future where we can target the infection, preserve healthy tissue, and save the limb. This is not just a dream, but a potential reality that we are striving to achieve at AltaSim through simulation support for our clients. Our simulation engineers are working alongside our client’s engineers to embrace the future of post-surgical infection treatment, where high-fidelity multiphysics simulations enable our client to develop medical innovations.
Electromagnetic heating is being used to treat infections around knee implants non-invasively. AltaSim Technologies, utilizing COMSOL Multiphysics®, collaborates with our client to simulate their product, providing a precise and controlled alternative to repeat surgeries. This approach preserves not only the joint but also the patient’s quality of life.
Why This Matters
This isn’t theoretical. Technology is maturing. Thanks to the multiphysics simulations AltaSim Technologies is conducting, the FDA is leaning on detailed, in silico models to help fast-track approvals that would have previously required exhaustive (and often painful) in vivo testing.
AltaSim’s simulations enabled our client to develop a technology that:
- Targets heat directly to the infected implant without substantially harming surrounding healthy tissue
- Simulates real human anatomy in detail, including nerves, arteries, veins, bone cement, and soft tissue
- Accurately predicts tissue heating, damage, and recovery
- Aids in personalized medicine, modeling each patient’s implant to create safer, more effective treatments
- Supports FDA submissions and accelerates time to approval
This collaboration is a glimpse into the future of personalized, non-invasive medical care. A future where technology doesn’t just treat infections, but also helps patients keep their limbs, avoid repeat surgeries, and return to their lives faster and stronger. This is the impact we aim to make at AltaSim through our support of technology development via multiphysics simulations.
Live COMSOL Demo and Q&A
Whether you’re a medical device engineer, regulatory professional, or just someone fascinated by the cutting edge of science and healthcare, we invite you to join us for this webinar. It will not only expand your perspective on what’s possible when simulation meets medicine but also provide you with a unique opportunity to contribute to the future of medical technology.
We will walk attendees through the simulation that supported the development of this advanced medical treatment step-by-step, explaining each part in detail. The simulation will include highly detailed human anatomy, including nerves, arteries, veins, bone, and soft tissue, making it as realistic as possible. After the demo, we will open the floor for a Q&A session.
You will have time to ask your questions. We have developed this simulation and look forward to sharing our knowledge with participants in the webinar. Come prepared with your questions or jot them down as we proceed.
We’re not just talking about saving knees. We’re talking about changing lives.