BoneChat

The discussion with Bill Hunter of Canary Medical focuses on the clinical data and financial impact of their smart knee implant technology, which uses motion sensors to objectively track patient recovery.

Summary: Smart Implant Data and Value
Key Clinical and Financial Impact
Cost Savings: Continuous monitoring of patients leads to a ~50% reduction in readmissions and ED visits. This translates to an average saving of $12,000–$14,000 per patient in the first year.

Prognostics: The large dataset (15,000+ patients) allows the system to predict patient risk early. By day 14, it can flag patients at high risk (97% accuracy) for poor outcomes like limited range of motion or abnormal gait. It also provides an early warning for DVT (based on low step count) and PJI (infection), where activity declines days before clinical diagnosis.

Opioid Use: Patients who check their data and see a normal recovery are more likely to skip a dose, leading to a ~20% reduction in opioid use.

Clinical Use
An easy-to-read dashboard guides intervention at the two-week visit: poor range of motion/gait suggests the need for increased physical therapy, while low activity flags the patient as a medical risk for readmission.

Key Q&A
Business Model: The company is pivoting from being a device company to a prognostic/diagnostic tool. Value is tied to risk-sharing contracts based on documented cost savings and new CPT codes for diagnostic panels, rather than relying on traditional Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM).

Future Applications: The technology monitors how people walk and is applicable beyond the knee, including the hip and spine. The company is also in a pivotal trial for a cardiac monitor.

AI: Artificial intelligence analyzes the ultra-high-resolution data to hunt for subtle, rare events like early infection risk.

The goal is for the implant to be a prognostic tool, providing objective data from the operative site to guide timely and necessary patient care.

   • BoneChat #105 - Bill Hunter (Canary Medica...