A rotary impactor for orthopedic surgery includes an output anvil and a hammer that is capable of imparting linear and rotary force on the anvil. The anvil may be moveable on a leadscrew element to alternately generate energy in an energy storage means and to move along the leadscrew element to impact the anvil. A viscoelastic mechanism or a dampening mechanism is used to reduce the reflected force and or torque during operation of the rotary impactor. High frequency linear impacts by the impactor obviate the need for a surgeon to provide an external push force on the impactor in order to perform a successful surgical operation.