Drawing on more than a century of working alongside clinicians, we are focused on solving the world’s most pressing healthcare challenges through innovations at the intersection of biology and technology.
With a global scale and deep expertise in surgery, orthopedics, vision and interventional solutions, J&J MedTech tackles the world’s most pressing healthcare challenges. Our innovations enable clinicians to reach the hardest-to-reach parts of the body, treat with pinpoint precision, restore anatomy and reimagine healing and recovery. Together, we will continue to develop smarter, less invasive, more personalized solutions to tackle the leading causes of mortality around the world.
The rapid acceleration of technology offers us an unprecedented opportunity to help transform patient care. At J&J MedTech, we are committed to advancing innovation and working to ensure that every breakthrough enhances care, improves patient outcomes and democratizes access for more people around the world.”
Surgical advancements
We continue to advance solutions in surgery applications for patients around the world. In 2023, key examples included:
Robotic-assisted surgery headway
In 2023, our VELYS Robotic-Assisted Solution, part of our VELYS Digital Surgery Platform that uses digital technology, robotics and data insights to improve patient care, expanded outside the U.S. and received the European CE mark and the UK Conformity Assessed (UKCA) mark. Approved for use in 18 markets, more than 43,000 ATTUNE knee procedures have been performed with the VELYS Robotic-Assisted Solution globally.
In 2023, we announced the first patient received robotic-assisted removal of kidney stones using the MONARCH Platform, Urology as part of a clinical study at the University of California, Irvine.
Additionally, our MONARCH Platform was approved in China. This achievement secures the Monarch Platform as the first Robotically-Assisted Platform for Endobronchial Surgery approved in China.
J&J MedTech also provided details and shared expected timelines to submit for regulatory approval of OTTAVA, a general surgery robot, in order to begin clinical trials. Building on J&J’s more than 135 year legacy in surgery, the OTTAVA surgical system is designed to create space in the OR, simplify complex workflows and enable flexibility for clinical approaches using our trusted Ethicon instrumentation.
Bleeding management
Despite the many advancements in surgery in recent decades, only 40% of all surgeries employ effective bleeding and leak control.23 We are helping to elevate standards of care for bleeding management to close this critical gap, and in 2023, we announced CE mark approval for our ETHIZIA Hemostatic Sealing Patch, a unique treatment option for surgeons to address bleeding and leak sites during surgery, especially in difficult-to-control bleeding situations. In a clinical trial, disruptive bleeding ceased in 30 seconds in 82% of patients receiving ETHIZIA and in 3 minutes in 97% of patients, significantly faster than our previous sealant products.
Cardiovascular breakthroughs
Leveraging our leadership in cardiac arrhythmia treatment, we advanced critical innovations in 2023, including gaining approval from the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare for the VARIPULSE Platform for the treatment of AFib. AFib is the most common type of cardiac arrhythmia, impacting nearly 38 million people worldwide and approximately 1.3 million people in Japan.24 The VARIPULSE Platform, differentiated by its CARTO 3 System integration and mapping capabilities, is the first Pulsed Field Ablation System approved in Japan.
The world’s smallest heart pump—IMPELLA—reached a significant milestone with more than 300,000 patients treated globally since 2008. This technology provides temporary hemodynamic support, allowing the heart to rest and helping patients return home with their native heart.
By advancing what’s next in surgery, we aim to unlock what science and technology can do to improve the surgical experience and health outcomes for everyone.”
Stroke care advances
We are proud to be on the front lines of stroke care—where every second counts—and strive to give patients a new lease on life after stroke. In 2023, CEREPAK detachable coils, designed to embolize brain aneurysms, were made available across the U.S. Additionally, in China, we launched CERENOVUS Stroke Solutions, our comprehensive system to aid physicians in clot-removal procedures.
Accelerating orthopaedics
Approximately 1.7 billion people have musculoskeletal disorders worldwide.25 In 2023, we advanced solutions to address orthopaedic care:
Expanding across specialties
We continued to introduce new solutions for hip and knee procedures under our VELYS Enabling Technology Platform that supports surgeon skills with data, insights, planning and execution solutions personalized for each procedure. We received FDA 510(k) clearances further addressing unmet needs in specialty areas within spine and foot and ankle. Our TRIALTIS Spine System offers a comprehensive implant portfolio and advanced instrumentation to help surgeons achieve more consistent outcomes in treating complex spine conditions. Additionally, our TRILEAP Lower Extremity Anatomic Plating System provides a diverse offering of contoured and conventional plates that can accommodate multiple screw diameters and instruments that can be used during the reduction, internal fixation and fusion of bones and bone fragments.
Leveraging AI in the OR
DePuy Synthes, J&J’s orthopaedics business, entered a strategic development and distribution collaboration with Ortoma AB, a Swedish medical technology company, to integrate DePuy Synthes technology into Ortoma’s OTS Hip solution for hip replacement surgery. The Ortoma system’s software is based on AI and enables preoperative planning, intraoperative navigation and postoperative follow-up of hip replacement procedures.
During 2023, we introduced several new orthopaedic solutions to benefit patients in China, driven by market needs and enabled by regulatory approvals by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA). These included: the first cementless hip stem in China available in different sizes, allowing hip replacement surgery for a broad range of patients; a bone-borne maxillomandibular fixation system that achieves perfect alignment of dental and jawbone settings to repair facial fractures; and the first cementless biological fixation tibia, which includes our patented ATTUNE Knee System technologies, enabling total knee replacement that provides high patient mobility and lower pain levels.
Innovations in vision
In 2023, J&J brought new eye health solutions to patients around the world. These included TECNIS Odyssey, which received PMA approval in the US, and TECNIS PureSee, which received the CE mark in Europe. These next-generation intraocular lenses (IOLs) are designed to provide cataract patients with clear vision in all lighting conditions and less visual disturbances. Cataracts are a common eye condition where the natural lens becomes clouded, impairing a patient’s vision. According to the National Eye Institute, more than half of all Americans aged 80 or older either have cataracts or have had surgery to remove cataracts.26 Developed for patients seeking more freedom from glasses post-surgery, the cutting-edge technology behind our TECNIS family of IOLs helps reduce unwanted side effects and offers high-quality vision for life.
23 2017 Biosurgery US/EU Bleeding Domain Research; 2020 Biosurgery China Bleeding Domain Research, n=66,584 bleeding occasions.
24 https://www.jnjmedtech.com/en-US/news-events/biosense-webster-announces-regulatory-approval-varipulse-pulsed-field-ablation-pfa. Mensah, G, Fuster, V, Murray, C. et al. Global Burden of Cardiovascular Diseases and Risks, 1990-2022. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2023 Dec, 82 (25) 2350–2473.
25 WHO, “Musculoskeletal health,” https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/musculoskeletal-conditions, accessed March 2024.
26 National Eye Institute, https://www.nei.nih.gov/learn-about-eye-health/eye-conditions-and-diseases/cataracts, accessed January 2024.
