Digital-supported workflow of orthopedic surgeries

Book excerpt: German hospitals are increasingly being asked to improve efficiency while striving to enhance the quality of standards that will afford a high level of patient safety and quality in the treatment process. The main objective of this Ph.D. thesis was to analyze whether digital support software used during surgery has a positive effect on selected clinical process and quality ratios in orthopedics. Two retrospective case-control studies of 383 hip joint endoprosthetic implantations and 297 knee joint endoprosthetic implantations were conducted at a German hospital between 2015 and 2020. Statistically significant results were evaluated commercially within the framework of the German diagnosis-related groups. Results show that the use of digitally assisted surgery leads to significantly shorter hospital stays and reduces postoperative complications, which in turn has a direct impact on treatment costs and hospital revenues.