First Patient Treated with the Alteon® Short Tapered Wedge Total Hip Replacement

New construct represents a strategic expansion of the company's leading hip portfolio

GAINESVILLE, Fla., June 23, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Exactech, a global medical device technology leader, announced the first surgery using the new Alteon^® Short Tapered Wedge Hip Stem.

The procedure was performed by Mark Schinsky, MD, with The American Hip Institute & Orthopedic Specialists in Chicago.

"For every total hip replacement, my goal as a surgeon is to reconstruct a mechanically stable hip joint with implants that fit the patient's anatomical needs," said Dr. Schinsky. "The Alteon Short Tapered Wedge Hip system provides a shorter and distally narrower version of the successful Alteon Tapered Wedge system. The addition of the Short Tapered Wedge system allows another option for surgeons to fit different femoral anatomies in one complete system." 

Engineered to conserve distal bone, the new stem incorporates features designed to achieve immediate axial and rotational stability while reproducibly creating the desired leg length and offset. 

"The introduction of the Alteon Short Tapered Wedge stem will add yet another solution to our comprehensive Alteon portfolio, which includes the Alteon Tapered Wedge, HA, Highly Polished Stem, and Acetabular Cup with XLE Highly Crosslinked Vitamin E liners," said Adam Hayden, Chief Marketing Officer and Senior Vice President of Large Joints at Exactech. "Our hip portfolio aims to Improve the Proven by incorporating differentiated improvements to time-tested designs in an efficient, ASC-friendly solution that utilizes just two and a half instrument trays."

Compared to previous generation wedge stems, the Alteon Tapered Wedge Stems intentionally grow at a smaller rate laterally and distally, especially in the smaller stem sizes. In addition, the Short Tapered Wedge is up to 25 percent shorter than the standard Tapered Wedge stems.

"Patients presenting with advanced hip arthritis expect their surgery to relieve pain, but patients also demand a high-functioning hip replacement that permits a return to daily activities," said Dr. Schinsky. "The rationale of this design provides all the same benefits of the standard Tapered Wedge, with shorter lengths to reduce potential canal impingement and increase the ease of placement through minimally invasive exposures. This addition is a tremendous advantage offered by Exactech."

The Alteon Short Tapered Wedge is currently in limited launch across select U.S. sites and is scheduled for full U.S. market release in the fourth quarter of 2025. For more information, visit www.exac.com.

About Exactech
Exactech is a global medical technology leader that empowers orthopaedic surgeons with innovative implants, surgical instruments and the Active Intelligence^® (AI) ecosystem of smart technologies to give patients EXACTLY what they need to regain mobility. Visit www.exac.com for more information and connect with us on LinkedIn, Vumedi, YouTube, Instagram and X.

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SOURCE Exactech, Inc