382 results about "Articular cartilage" patented technology

An embodiment of the invention includes a surgical device for coagulating soft tissue such as atrial tissue in the treatment of atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, and atrial tachycardia; tendon or ligament shrinkage; or articular cartilage removal. The surgical device integrates a suction mechanism with the coagulation mechanism improving the lesion creation capabilities of the device. The surgical device comprises an elongate member having an insulative covering attached about conductive elements capable of coagulating soft tissue when radiofrequency or direct current energy is transmitted to the conductive elements. Openings through the insulative covering expose regions of the conductive elements and are coupled to lumens in the elongate member which are routed to a vacuum source. Suction causes the soft tissue to actively engage the opening thus the integrated, exposed conductive elements to facilitate the coagulation process and ensure the lesions created are consistent, continuous, and transmural. The embodiments of the invention can also incorporate cooling mechanisms associated with the conductive elements and coupled to a fluid source to passively transport fluid along the contacted soft tissue surface to cool thus pushing the maximum temperature deeper into tissue.

A method of implanting a prosthetic acetabular cup into a patient is disclosed. The method comprises gaining access to an acetabulum of the patient, where the acetabulum includes an inner portion formed of bone and an outer portion formed of articular cartilage. The method also comprises creating a recess within the articular cartilage of the outer portion of the acetabulum without removing any portion of bone from the inner portion of the acetabulum. The recess is shaped to mate with a snap-fit structure of the prosthetic acetabular cup. Finally, the method comprises securely engaging the prosthetic acetabular cup with the acetabulum by snap-fitting the snap-fit structure of the prosthetic acetabular cup with the recess in the articular cartilage of the outer portion of the acetabulum.

An implant for installation into a portion of an articular surface includes a protrusion configured to cover an un-excised portion of articular surface proximate to the implant. Another implant may form a cavity to allow the un-excised portion of articular surface to remodel over a perimeter edge of the implant. The implant may also include indentations such as grooves to promote articular cartilage remodeling over a portion of the load bearing surface of the implant. An elongated or non-round implant is also provided having two opposing concentric arcuate shaped sides, as well as a method to seat such an implant in an articular surface. A method for seating an implant without cutting articular cartilage is also provided.

A device for repair of intervertebral discs and cartilages in articular joints includes a catheter for inserting through a cannula, the catheter having a distal end and a proximal end and a lumen extending longitudinally therethrough. An expandable balloon may optionally be detachably attached to the catheter near the distal end. The proximal end of the catheter is coupled to an injector that holds a supply of a thermoplastic elastomer material at a predetermined elevated temperature sufficiently high to maintain the thermoplastic elastomer at a liquid state. The device allows a thermoplastic elastomer material to be injected into the intervertegral disc space or the articular joint space as a replacement prosthetic for the disc's nucleus pulposus or the joint's cartilage. This procedure is carried out percutaneously through the cannula.

A device is provided for retaining an articular cartilage graft within a cavity formed in cartilage. The device is a disk-shaped cap having a peripheral edge formed to be complementary with a wall of the cavity such that with the cap inserted into the cavity, it is secured in position in overlying relationship with the graft.

Methods and compositions for inhibiting articular cartilage degradation. The compositions preferably include multiple chondroprotective agents, including at least one agent that promotes cartilage anabolic activity and at least one agent that inhibits cartilage catabolism. The compositions may also include one or more pain and inflammation inhibitory agents. The compositions may be administered systemically, such as to treat patients at risk of cartilage degradation at multiple joints, and suitably may be formulated in a carrier or delivery vehicle that is targeted to the joints. Alternatively the compositions may be injected or infused directly into the joint.

A dynamic spinal implant utilizes cartilage bearing graft material in dynamic disc replacement and/or facet arthroplasty. Methods and apparatus for dynamic spinal implants incorporate bulk articular graft tissues derived from donor joint sources in human (allograft or autograft) or non-human (xenograft) tissue. The donor joint is preferably prepared as a biological dynamic spinal implant with articular cartilage as a bearing interface between adjacent bone surfaces that naturally articulate with respect to one another.

A partial resurfacing implant for use in repairing an articular cartilage defect site that includes a top articulating portion having a top surface that is configured with at least one radius of curvature to approximate the surface contour of the articular cartilage surrounding the defect site. The implant also includes a supporting plate that has a top surface and a bottom surface. The top surface is attached to the top articulating portion by a locking mechanism. The bottom surface of the supporting plate is constructed to facilitate the insertion of the implant into the defect site. Extending from the bottom surface of the supporting plate is at least one implant fixation portion. The at least one implant fixation portion is integrally connected to and is oriented about normal relative to the bottom surface. A method of repairing an articular cartilage defect with the partial joint resurfacing implant is also disclosed.

The invention discloses a knee prosthesis implantation method, an osteotomy module for usage and a using device, the knee prosthesis implantation method comprises the following steps of measuring the data of knee joint bone tissues, extracting the data of articular cartilage and the skeleton profile, establishing a three-dimensional model in an image processor, designing the osteotomy module, determining the size and the type of the used knee prosthesis and determining an osteotomy module model and the implantation of the knee prosthesis. The knee prosthesis implantation method of the invention can reduce the trauma of a patient, lower the cost, shorten the implantation time, reduce the risk of complications of a user of the knee prosthesis and have comparatively small error and higher precision.

An acellular matrix implant for treatment of defects and injuries of articular cartilage, bone or osteochondral bone and a method for treatment of injured, damaged, diseased or aged articular cartilage or bone, using the acellular matrix implant implanted into a joint cartilage lesion in situ and a bone-inducing composition implanted into an osteochondral or bone defect. A method for repair and restoration of the injured, damaged, diseased or aged cartilage or bone into its full functionality by implanting the acellular matrix implant between two layers of biologically acceptable sealants and/or the bone-inducing composition into the osteochondral bone or skeletal bone defect. A method for fabrication of the acellular matrix implant of the invention. A method for preparation of bone-inducing composition.

A generalized multi-point fat-water separation process is combined with steady-state free precession (SSFP) to obtain high quality images of articular cartilage with reduced imaging time.

The invention provides a process for preparing biocompatible directional carbon nanotube array reinforced composite hydrogel, which utilizes the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique, the radial cross linking technique and a freezing and thawing method. By permeating polymer sol into a carbon nanotube prefabricated body, aggregating and tangling problems during a compounding process of the carbon nanotube and polymer are resolved, boundary strength of a reinforcing phase and a basis phase is increased, and excellent performances of the nanotube on mechanics and electricity are played sufficiently. The composite hydrogel prepared by utilizing a physical cross linking process does not contain chemical additives and meets requirements on biocompatibility. The composite hydrogel prepared by the process has controllable length and direction of the reinforcing phase of a nanotube array, has integrated mechanics and electricity performances superior to those of the conventional hydrogel,and is adoptive to be applied to the biomedical field such as artificial articular cartilages, tissues engineering supports, nerve cell carries, biomimetic implanted electrode and the like.

Particulate cartilage compositions for stimulating chondrogenesis and producing cartilage regeneration and processes for their preparation are disclosed. Methods for regenerating articular cartilage are also disclosed.

Methods and apparatuses for digit joint arthroplasty. The present invention preferably allows for the treatment of disorders of digit joints generally and interphalageal joints more specifically. The present invention provides implants for the replacement of digit joint cartilage. The implants of the present invention preferably include a head and a shaft. The head may be shaped similarly to the cartilage that is being replaced. The shaft is adapted so as to be able to be fit into, for example, the phalanx. In certain preferred embodiments, the shaft is threaded so that it may gain purchase to the phalangeal cortex. The articulating portion of the implant preferably mimics the articular surface of the native phalanx and thereby places minimal motion restriction on the patient. The implants and methods of the present invention have particular utility with the DIP joint of the hand.

Systems and methods for securing a screen-type active electrode to the distal tip of an electrosurgical device used for selectively applying electrical energy to a target location within or on a patient's body. A securing electrode is disposed through the screen electrode and mechanically joined to an insulative support body while also creating an electrical connection and mechanical enagement with the screen electrode. The electrosurgical device and related methods are provided for resecting, cutting, partially ablating, aspirating or otherwise removing tissue from a target site, and ablating the tissue in situ. The present methods and systems are particularly useful for removing tissue within joints, e.g., synovial tissue, meniscus, articular cartilage and the like.

To improve a cartilage replacement implant for the biological regeneration of a damaged cartilage area of articular cartilage in the human body, comprising a cell carrier which has a defect-contacting surface for placement on the damaged cartilage area and is formed and designed for colonization with human cells, so that after implantation of the cartilage replacement implant, formation of a gap between adjacent contact surfaces of the implant and surrounding recipient tissue is minimized, it is proposed that the cell carrier rest with surface-to-surface contact on a carrier and be joined to the carrier at a cell carrier surface that faces away from the defect-contacting surface. A method for producing a cartilage replacement implant is also proposed.

A fiber-reinforced, polymeric implant material useful for tissue engineering, and method of making same are provided. The fibers are preferably aligned predominantly parallel to each other, but may also be aligned in a single plane. The implant material comprises a polymeric matrix, preferably a biodegradable matrix, having fibers substantially uniformly distributed therein. Inorganic particles may also be included in the implant material. In preferred embodiments, porous tissue scaffolds are provided which facilitate regeneration of load-bearing tissues such as articular cartilage and bone. Non-porous fiber-reinforced implant materials are also provided herein useful as permanent implants for load-bearing sites.

A biomedical material for transplant to a subject is provided according to embodiments of the present invention which includes an isolated donor tissue enzyme-treated to reduce the amount of proteoglycans in the donor tissue compared to untreated tissue. Isolated cells are optionally added to the enzyme-treated donor tissue, including leukocytes, particularly monocytes; macrophages; platelets; cells derived from an intervertebral disc such as chondrocyte-like nucleus pulposus cells; fibrocytes; fibroblasts; mesenchymal stem cells; mesenchymal precursor cells; chondrocytes; or a combination of any of these. The isolated donor tissue is articular cartilage or an intervertebral disc tissue such as nucleus pulposus tissue and/or annulus fibrosis tissue enzyme-treated to remove proteoglycans normally present in these tissues. A biomedical material of the present invention is administered to a subject to treat a disorder or injury, such as a disorder or injury to connective tissue.