PITTSBURGH, USA & BIRMINGHAM, UK, July 23, 2026
MolecuLight and The Royal Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (ROH) have announced the publication of the first clinical study evaluating the use of real-time fluorescence imaging during orthopaedic surgery, marking a significant advancement in surgical infection management. Published in BMJ Open, the independently conducted feasibility study provides the first clinical evidence supporting the use of the MolecuLightDX® imaging device as an adjunct to surgical debridement during revision knee arthroplasty for periprosthetic joint infection (PJI). The findings suggest that fluorescence imaging may help surgeons identify residual bacterial contamination that is not visible through conventional surgical assessment, potentially improving infection control and supporting more effective surgical outcomes. This milestone highlights the expanding role of advanced medical imaging technologies in orthopaedic procedures and reinforces the growing importance of real-time intraoperative visualization in improving patient care.
First Clinical Evidence Supports Fluorescence Imaging in Orthopaedics
Periprosthetic joint infection remains one of the most challenging complications following joint replacement surgery, often requiring complex revision procedures to eliminate infected tissue completely. Successful treatment depends on thorough radical surgical debridement, yet surgeons frequently face difficulties identifying all infected areas using conventional methods alone. In the prospective 10-patient pilot study conducted at the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital, surgeons incorporated the MolecuLightDX® fluorescence imaging system immediately after standard debridement to assess the operative field for any remaining bacterial burden. Areas displaying bacterial fluorescence that were not detected during the initial procedure were subsequently biopsied, with microbiological analysis confirming the presence of the same bacterial species responsible for the patients’ infections. These findings provide the first published clinical evidence demonstrating that real-time fluorescence imaging may enhance intraoperative detection of bacterial contamination during revision knee surgery.
Technology May Improve Surgical Decision-Making and Infection Control
The study suggests that integrating AI-assisted fluorescence imaging into orthopaedic surgery could provide surgeons with immediate visual information that complements existing surgical techniques. By identifying residual bacterial burden during surgery, the technology has the potential to support more complete tissue removal while helping reduce the likelihood of persistent or recurrent infections, one of the leading causes of revision surgery failure. Researchers emphasized that the feasibility study represents an important first step and that larger clinical trials will be necessary to validate these encouraging findings and determine their impact on long-term patient outcomes. Clinical investigators noted that improved visualization during surgery may ultimately contribute to fewer repeat procedures, lower postoperative complications, enhanced treatment planning, and more informed surgical decision-making. The publication also demonstrates how advanced point-of-care imaging technologies continue to expand beyond wound care into broader perioperative and surgical applications.
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MolecuLight Expands Clinical Applications Beyond Wound Care
The publication marks an important milestone for MolecuLight, whose FDA-cleared imaging devices are already widely recognized for the real-time detection of elevated bacterial burden in wounds, digital wound measurement, and thermal imaging. The latest clinical evidence expands the potential application of the company’s fluorescence imaging technology into orthopaedic surgery, creating new opportunities for perioperative infection management across healthcare settings. Company leadership described the publication as a significant step toward broader clinical adoption, emphasizing that providing surgeons with immediate visualization of residual bacteria could improve procedural precision and strengthen future standards of surgical care. As additional multicenter studies evaluate the technology in larger patient populations, real-time fluorescence imaging may become an increasingly valuable tool for enhancing surgical accuracy, improving infection control strategies, and advancing innovation in medical imaging and orthopaedic surgery.
Source: MolecuLight press release
