LOS ANGELES -- A Los Angeles surgeon will show 30 visiting orthopedic surgeons from China how he uses Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) technology to guide him as he replaces knees, hips or leg bones in patients, a spokeswoman said on Sunday.
"The doctor (Lawrence Menendez) uses the satellites to precisely measure legs and make sure they are even," said spokeswoman Sandra Levy at the Medical Center of the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.
Dr. Menendez delivered a speech on the new technique last year in China, and invited the surgeons to stop here to see the pioneering work demonstrated as they travel to an international conference later this week in San Francisco.
On Monday morning, a 29 year-old man with bone cancer will have his knee joint and eight inches of bone removed and replaced with a synthetic internal prosthesis. Following that, a 64 year-old woman will get a hip replacement.
In both cases, the Chinese doctors will observe how data from GPS satellites orbiting 12,600 miles (about 20,160 kilometers) above Los Angeles will help guide the doctor in his work, Levy said.
