Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 14, 2026
A Spine Robotic-Assisted Navigation System for Pedicle Screw Placement
Published on: May 11, 2020
A prospective, randomized, controlled trial of robot-assisted vs freehand pedicle screw fixation in spine surgery
Ho-Joong Kim1, Whan-Ik Jung1, Bong-Soon Chang2
1Spine Center and Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Seoul National University College of Medicine and Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Sungnam, Republic of Korea.
Background:
The purpose of this study was to compare the accuracy and safety of an instrumented posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF) using a robot-assisted minimally invasive (Robot-PLIF) or a conventional open approach (Freehand-PLIF).
Methods:
Patients undergoing an instrumented PLIF were randomly assigned to be treated using a Robot-PLIF (37 patients) and a Freehand-PLIF (41 patients).
Results:
For intrapedicular accuracy, there was no significant difference between the groups (P = 0.534). For proximal facet joint accuracy, none of the 74 screws in the Robot-PLIF group violated the proximal facet joint, while 13 of 82 in the Freehand-PLIF group violated the proximal facet joint (P < 0.001). The average distance of the screws from the facets was 5.2 ± 2.1 mm and 2.7 ± 1.6 mm in the Robot-PLIF and Freehand-PLIF groups, respectively (P < 0.001).
Conclusion:
Robotic-assisted pedicle screw placement was associated with fewer proximal facet joint violations and better convergence orientations.
