Moximed: Clinical trial starts for ‘shock absorber for the knee’

Moximed’s Calypso Knee System

Moximed said that surgeons have implanted its Calpyso knee unloading system in the first osteoarthritis patient in its U.S. clinical trial.

The Calypso is designed to work like a shock absorber for the knee by restoring a more normal load balance within the joint. It may help prevent or delay total knee replacement, according to the Fremont, Calif. company. The system is implanted under the skin, along the inside of the knee joint, through a single incision. Unlike joint replacement procedures, none of the bone, ligament, or cartilage is removed, which may help maintain future treatment options, the company said.

Surgeons at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center performed the surgery. The clinical trial is examining the device’s ability to extend the life of the joint while allowing patients to remain active without knee pain.

“It works like a shock absorber to take pressure off the inside of the knee while creating a cushion similar to what cartilage provides in a healthy joint,” said David Flanigan, M.D., the orthopedic surgeon who performed the procedure, in a prepared statement. “The hope is that it increases joint functionality, reduces pain and delays a total knee arthroplasty for years or even decades.”

Moximed’s Atlas knee system won the CE Mark in 2015.