INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — As the U.S. population ages, the wear and tear of daily life on critical joints grows, too.

Now, some physicians are not only replacing knee joints, but also implanting a tiny FDA-approved sensor to relay real-time information about recovery back to the doctor and patient.

Knee replacement surgery replaces damaged bones with metal and plastic parts, which are now being improved with a tiny tracking sensor, just approved by the FDA.

“You do something and you see how it went, and then you make a change and you see if it helped,” said Marc Hungerford, MD Orthopedic surgeon at Mercy Medical Center.

The motion tracer records daily steps, functional range of motion, cadence, and walking speed during activity, transmitting that information while you’re sleeping.

“This is next to their bedside, and the sensor will wake up and transmit that motion information,” said Hungerford.

Furnishing real-time cloud data, accessible by physicians or patients, who can then compare their progress to others.

“They have comparatives, right? So, they have, ‘How am I doing compared to people my own age?’” said Hungerford.

This groundbreaking knee sensor is new – Hungerford has only used it in 10 patients – but it’s promising good results.

The goal of the Persona IQ Sensor is 100% patient compliance to improve the quality of patient life and to relay real-time information on knee function and patient recovery.

This story was created from a script aired on WISH-TV. Health Spotlight is presented by Community Health Network.