Bone's Technology: A Pioneer in Intelligent Orthopedics Driving Medical Upgrade Across the Full Diagnostic and Therapeutic Workflow
Data indicate a further deepening of population aging in China. According to the Seventh National Population Census, the population aged 60 and above in China was approximately 264 million, accounting for 18.70% of the total population; the population aged 65 and above was approximately 190 million, representing 13.50%. These figures represent increases of 5.44 percentage points and 4.63 percentage points, respectively, compared with 2010.
Amid accelerating population aging, the number of orthopedic patients has nearly doubled, posing significant challenges to orthopedic diagnosis and treatment in China.On the one hand, orthopedic diseases are highly prevalent among the elderly, and population aging is rapidly driving up the demand for orthopedic treatment.
On the other hand, traditional diagnosis and treatment of orthopedic diseases are highly dependent on physicians’ professional expertise and clinical experience. Clinical practice faces challenges such as the difficulty of precise quantification, leading to instances of missed diagnoses and misdiagnoses.
In April this year, the National Health Commission issued the Notice on the Establishment Standards for the National Orthopedic Medical Center and National Regional Orthopedic Medical Centers, stating that it would further promote the expansion of high-quality orthopedic medical resources and their balanced regional distribution, enhance the capacity of orthopedic medical service provision, facilitate the achievement of tiered diagnosis and treatment by region, and organize the formulation of the Establishment Standards for the National Orthopedic Medical Center and the Establishment Standards for National Regional Orthopedic Medical Centers.
As policy signals demonstrate a heightened focus on the orthopedics sector, the market is poised to respond more rapidly. Indeed, with advancements in precision medicine, 3D printing, and artificial intelligence, a wave of digitalization and intelligent transformation in orthopedics has already emerged, offering solutions to the challenges facing orthopedic diagnosis and treatment.
Bozhi Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Bozhi Biotech”) specializes in providing digital diagnostic and therapeutic solutions for orthopedics to physicians and patients.Leveraging nearly 30 years of specialized research expertise in orthopedics from the Orthopaedic Laboratory of The University of Hong Kong, and integrating biomechanics, clinical big data, and artificial intelligence technologies,Developed a range of intelligent orthopedic diagnostic and therapeutic devices, including AI-powered diagnostic software, surgical robots, and personalized consumables, with the aim of building a comprehensive one-stop product portfolio for orthopedic care.
Among them, Bozhi Biotech’s flagship product—"Digital Orthopedic Diagnosis and Treatment All-in-One Machine, a Global First."
Bozhi Biologics was founded in Hong Kong in 2018 and subsequently established a subsidiary in Qianhai, Shenzhen. Over the four years since its inception, the company has completed the research, development, and regulatory registration of an integrated digital orthopedic diagnosis and treatment system, and has initiated the research, development, and validation of a comprehensive product portfolio.
Flagship All-in-One Machine: High Diagnostic Accuracy and Wide Applicability
The Digital Orthopedic Diagnosis and Treatment All-in-One Machine is Bozhi Biology's flagship product.It is a platform-based product that integrates multiple functional modules, including a Computer-Aided Detection (CAD) System for Bone Mineral Density, a Fracture Risk Assessment System, and a Digital Surgical Planning System.
· Computer-Aided Detection System for Bone Mineral DensitySpecifically used for viewing and annotating CT images, it can measure bone mineral density values in corresponding regions, assisting physicians in diagnosing osteoporosis.
· Fracture Risk Assessment SystemAssess the degree of osteoporosis risk in the human body by analyzing specific parameters of bone microarchitecture, bone mineral density, and bone strength.
· Digital Surgical Planning SystemPrecise detection of individualized bone quality through intelligent analysis of clinical CT images, enabling 3D image reconstruction to assist physicians in planning optimal surgical procedures, analyzing risks associated with surgical pathways, and evaluating postoperative treatment outcomes.
Source: Bozhi Biologics
This product enables digital display of medical images, personalized bone quality assessment, 3D bone reconstruction and visualization, orthopedic surgical planning, and postoperative orthopedic evaluation.Currently, the All-in-One Machine 1.0 equipped with medical image processing software has obtained the Class II Medical Device Registration Certificate in China.
According to Dr. Ma Chi, CEO of Bozhi Biotech, the integrated digital orthopedic diagnosis and treatment system currently primarily addresses the clinical pain point of low accuracy in traditional bone quality assessment. ItIt can increase the accuracy of traditional bone quality assessment from 60% to 99%, thereby assisting physicians in making better diagnostic decisions.
This substantial improvement in accuracy is built upon Bozhi Bio’s advanced phantom-free QCT technology. The core of this technology is high precision, which is underpinned by fundamental principles of radiological physics, supported by tens of thousands of clinical cases, and enabled by artificial intelligence algorithms.
In addition to improving diagnostic accuracy, the digital orthopedic all-in-one diagnosis and treatment system can also integrate various subcategories of orthopedic diseases.Therefore, in the company's product strategy, it plays the role of the "brain," providing support for orthopedic diagnosis and treatment based on data analysis.
Meanwhile, it also serves as a market-entry product, enabling rapid access to hospitals and strengthening engagement with physicians, thereby expanding future business opportunities for the company.
Product Matrix: Building a Closed-Loop System for Orthopedic Diagnosis and Treatment
Aligned with its strategic positioning as a provider of digital orthopedic solutions, Bozhi Bio has developed a product portfolio anchored by its flagship Digital Orthopedic Diagnosis and Treatment All-in-One Machine, and encompassing digital surgical guides, digital minimally invasive equipment, and digital bone implants. This product portfolio integrates surgical planning, intelligent hardware, and personalized consumables.
Among these, the integrated diagnostic and treatment system serves as the physician’s “brain”; digital surgical guides and digital minimally invasive devices assist physicians in “execution”; and orthopedic implants, which are indispensable in orthopedics, complete the offering. These three segments constitute Bozhi Biotech’s comprehensive layout in the orthopedics sector, forming an integrated solution covering diagnosis, treatment, and consumables.
Source: Bozhi Biotech
Furthermore, in the digital prevention of orthopedic conditions, Bozhi Bio plans to launch a drug-device combination hydrogel product. This product enables precise positioning of the application site under the guidance of an intelligent all-in-one machine and utilizes an intelligent analysis system to control drug dosage release, thereby helping patients enhance bone mineral density in high-risk areas and prevent osteoporotic fractures.
Currently, Bozhi Biotech’s two bone density products have passed the quality inspections conducted by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA), while its new-generation minimally invasive orthopedic surgical system is under development. Dr. Ma Chi revealed that the company expects to obtain four registration certificates next year and plans to expand into the Asia-Pacific, European, and North American markets in 2023.
Bozhi Biologics was founded four years ago and remains an innovative startup. However, its founding team brings with it nearly 30 years of experience in orthopedics.
· Professor Lu Weijia, Founder of the Company, is the Wu Zhenmin Foundation Professor at The University of Hong Kong, Chair of the International Bone Research Society Conference, Former President of the Hong Kong Institution of Medical and Biological Engineering, and Principal Investigator of a National Key R&D Program project (the first in Hong Kong). He was ranked among the top 1% of scientists globally by ISI for ten consecutive years (2009–2018).
· Dr. Ma Chi, Co-founder and CEO, Ph.D. in Orthopaedics from The University of Hong Kong. Previously worked at Robert Bosch GmbH in Germany, Corigine (HK) Inc., and the Image Systems Laboratory of The University of Hong Kong, with many years of experience in the medical device industry.
· Dr. Qi Huan, CTO, holds a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Oxford and is an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Hong Kong. He previously worked as a Data Scientist at Shell. He has achieved multiple research breakthroughs in the field of intelligent medicine, with his findings published at international academic conferences such as ICCV, MICCAI, and MIUA.
Bozhi Biologics currently has a team of nearly 30 members, with R&D personnel accounting for 80% of the workforce. The company has assembled a group of top-tier researchers from prestigious domestic and international institutions, including the University of Hong Kong, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the University of Oxford, and Columbia University.
Bozhi Biologics has thus demonstrated strong innovativeness, enabling efficient and targeted solutions to clinical challenges. The company identifies two significant pain points currently facing the orthopedic industry: first, how to extend the expertise of leading specialists to grassroots hospitals; second, how to digitize surgical procedures.
The former represents Bozhi Biotech’s original mission: to standardize orthopedic diagnostics and make healthcare universally accessible.Regional disparities in medical resources expose many patients in remote areas to the risk of misdiagnosis. Bozhi Biotech aims to enhance the accuracy of orthopedic diagnosis and treatment through its digital software-based diagnostic system, ultimately benefiting patients.
A key feature of digitalization is its inclusivity. The intelligent and digital upgrade in orthopedics can quantify excellent surgical experience into data for storage and standardization, assisting physicians in diagnosis during subsequent treatment processes. This enables patients across all regions to access high-quality medical services, truly achieving the decentralization of healthcare resources.
The latter focuses on the challenges of digitalization in orthopedics, which from another perspective also serves as a solution to the issues raised by the former. Orthopedics is undoubtedly one of the forefront areas in the development of digital healthcare, integrating multiple intelligent technologies such as AI and 3D printing. Bozhi Biologics has combined computer technology with clinical orthopedic practice and provided an answer through its product matrix: delivering precise, minimally invasive, and personalized diagnosis and treatment services to patients via digital means.
Currently, Bozhi Biotech has partnered with nearly 40 top-tier (Grade III Class A) hospitals in China, including Queen Mary Hospital in Hong Kong, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, the Chinese PLA General Hospital, and Xiangya Hospital of Central South University. The integrated digital orthopedic diagnosis and treatment system has been clinically used in over 7,000 cases.
To date, Bozhi Biotech has secured investments from Angel Fund by HKX and MiraclePlus, as well as research funding support from the Innovation and Technology Commission of Hong Kong and industry linkage resources provided by Hong Kong Science Park.
Final Thoughts:
During the interview, Dr. Ma Chi candidly shared his personal experience, revealing that as an orthopedic patient, he had eight screws implanted in his shoulders and underwent two shoulder joint surgeries. Misdiagnosis during his treatment led to approximately 30 dislocations of his joints, a painful ordeal that became a nightmare throughout his childhood.
Today, digital technologies significantly help physicians improve diagnostic accuracy, which in turn helps patients endure less suffering. Bozhi Biotech aims to enhance diagnosis and treatment through technological innovation, assisting every patient in the treatment and prevention of orthopedic diseases, fostering healthy lives, and achieving accessible healthcare for all.
Technological iteration and innovation often begin with addressing pain points and ultimately culminate in fulfilling those needs; technology should make healthcare more pure.