Years of farming had taken a toll on Bob Baumgartner’s knee, wear and tear that eventually required a joint replacement. After a stress test, an MRI, and an informational “joint camp” session, Baumgartner’s surgery, a total knee replacement, was recently performed at Torrington Community Hospital with high-tech assistance from Stryker MAKO SmartRobotics.
In addition to total knee replacements, Torrington also does total hip replacements using the Stryker MAKO Technology.
“Banner Health Torrington Community Hospital is the first hospital within a 60-mile radius to employ this state-of-the-art technology,” said Levi Keener, Director of Clinical Operations. “By combining 3D scan-based planning capabilities with AccuStop haptic technology and data analytics, the MAKO system delivers high-precision accuracy and safety while preserving healthy bone and tissue.”
Community Hospital began implementing the MAKO robotics technology in the spring of 2024 to improve outcomes and accelerate patient recovery times for hip, total knee and partial knee replacement surgeries.
Kyle Telford, senior rehabilitation services manager at Torrington Community Hospital, said the use of the MAKO-assisted robot offers several significant benefits.
“Patients tend to have less initial pain,” Telford said. “From a rehab standpoint, this helps us get patients up and walking sooner after their procedures. Additionally, with better pain control and improved mobility, they’re able to leave the hospital and return home sooner.”
Orthopedic provider Matt Mattis, PA-C, agreed. “Since implementing total joint surgery utilizing the MAKO robot, I have noticed decreased pain and increased function at patients’ initial post-op visits. Patients tend to navigate physical therapy and recovery at a quicker pace, versus standard knee replacement.”
In Baumgartner’s case, rehabilitative physical therapy began within a week of his Oct. 15 surgery, continuing at the hospital and then moving to his own home the week of Nov. 24.
“Bob was a phenomenal patient who did extremely well following his surgery,” Telford said. “He was able to go from using a walker on day one to a cane at week two to no assistive device at all by week three. He was consistently two-plus weeks ahead of where I would have expected him to be following his replacement.”
Within six weeks, Baumgartner had been cleared to return to nearly all of his daily tasks and hobbies. He’ll go back to the hospital for a follow-up X-ray in January to check his progress.
“I’ve tried to be as dedicated to my PT as I could,” he said. “It takes a lot of time, and you’ve got to take it seriously if you want it to turn out good. I’ve got a ways to go yet, but I’m glad I had the surgery done.”
“We’ve seen similar results with other patients who have chosen to have their replacements done using the MAKO robot,” Telford said. “The surgical scars tend to close more quickly with the scar being less visible,” he added.
Part of the six-state Banner Health system, Torrington Community Hospital remains one of the few hospitals in eastern Wyoming and western Nebraska to offer MAKO robotics-assisted joint replacement. To learn more, visit bannerhealth.com/torrington.
