4 stories this morning, for surgeons and the people who support them.
- PearlMatrix P-15 peptide bone graft's Medicare new technology add-on payment goes live October 1 — TLIF use only, capped at $3,380, alongside INFUSE's $4,396.60 TLIF add-on — Cerapedics announced Oct 1, 2026 that PearlMatrix P-15 has a Medicare NTAP effective Oct 1, 2026. The FY2027 IPPS final rule (91 FR 49570, Aug 4, 2026; https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/08/04/2026-15833) limits NTAP to use with a TLIF device (the Breakthrough-designated indication, PMA June 18, 2025; a Dec 11, 2025 PMA supplement added approaches), cost per case $5,200, max NTAP $3,380; INFUSE Bone Graft's FY2027 NTAP max is $4,396.60 on $6,764. The same rule repeals the Breakthrough alternative NTAP pathway beginning with FY2028 applications. Company states its pivotal trial showed more than twice as many patients fused at six months vs local autograft, with 60% high-risk patients. Source
- Tenon Medical takes the 3D-printed titanium lateral screw in its SImmetry+ SI joint fusion system to full commercial launch after a ~$1.2M alpha — Tenon announced Sept 30, 2026 full launch of the SImmetry+ lateral screw (lateral and posterior oblique access) after a limited alpha that generated about $1.2M in incremental revenue from late Q4 2025 through Q3 2026, and added two implant sizes; Tenon acquired SImmetry+ in August 2025 and also sells Catamaran (inferior-posterior). Scale from Tenon's Q2 2026 results (Aug 13, 2026, https://www.nasdaq.com/press-release/tenon-medical-reports-second-quarter-2026-financial-results-2026-08-13): Q2 revenue $1.3M, cash $1.7M at June 30, $4.2M public offering closed after quarter end. Prior coverage: Tenon's $3M private placement on the 2026-08-31 episode. Source
- JBJS: revision hip and knee volume across 17 registry countries projected to rise ~36% by 2060, led by the US and China — Adolf, Karlidag and Citak, J Bone Joint Surg Am, online Sept 30, 2026 (doi 10.2106/JBJS.26.00772), Level IV modeling: modeled 2024 aggregate of 185,921 rTHA and 189,689 rTKA rises to 243,404 and 267,456 by 2060 (+31%, +41%) under the primary capped Poisson model; US and China drive most absolute growth, Germany/UK/Sweden plateau, Japan declines; methods span ~461,000 to ~511,000 combined 2060 procedures. Source
- BMJ, UK National Joint Registry target trial emulation: robotic and conventional hips and knees show equal five-year implant survival; robotic hips had about half the malposition-related revisions — Mohammad, Judge, Griffin, Murray, BMJ Sept 30, 2026. Knees (PMID 42815981, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42815981/): 697,145 cases 2018-2024, 22,111 robotic; matched 5-year TKR survival 98.6% robotic vs 98.5% conventional (HR 1.03, 95% CI 0.86-1.26); UKR HR 1.03. Hips (PMID 42815970): 666,283 THRs, 10,203 robotic; 5-year survival 98.8% in both (HR 0.96); malposition-related revision HR 0.53 (95% CI 0.30-0.93). Mean follow-up 2.5 years; observational, residual confounding acknowledged. Source
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