Ankle Prostheses Curved Surfaces Biomechanical Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current ankle arthroplasty systems are biomechanically inaccurate, time-consuming, and lack sufficient bone fixation, making them inefficient for mimicking natural ankle motion and ensuring implant stability during joint function.
Innovation Solution
The development of ankle arthroplasty systems featuring talar and tibial prostheses with specifically designed articular and bone engagement surfaces, including keels, to provide enhanced biomechanics and secure bone fixation, along with cutting guides and tools for streamlined implantation, allowing for precise preparation of bone surfaces to match the prosthetic shapes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If traditional ankle arthroplasty implants are used, then the procedure can be performed, but the biomechanical accuracy is poor and natural ankle motion cannot be mimicked
Solution Approach 1:
The tibial prosthesis features a concave articular surface and the talar prosthesis has a convex articular surface, creating a spherical joint configuration that mimics the natural ankle joint geometry. This curvature design enables more accurate biomechanical alignment and natural motion characteristics while maintaining manufacturability through standard rotational molding and machining processes
2Productivity
If traditional ankle arthroplasty implants are used, then the procedure can be performed, but the implantation process is time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The bone engagement surfaces are pre-shaped with specific curvatures (concave for tibial, convex for talar) that match the complementary prosthesis surfaces. This preliminary preparation of bone surfaces with appropriate geometry allows for direct placement and alignment of the prostheses without requiring extensive intraoperative shaping or adjustment, thereby reducing surgical time
3Reliability
If traditional ankle arthroplasty implants are used, then the procedure can be performed, but sufficient bone fixation is not achieved
Solution Approach 1:
The bone engagement surfaces feature specific curvatures (concave for tibial prosthesis, convex for talar prosthesis) that enable precise anatomical fitting to the prepared bone surfaces. This curved geometry maximizes surface contact area and distributes loads evenly, enhancing mechanical interlocking and achieving superior bone fixation and attachment strength
Data Source
AI summary
An ankle arthroplasty system may have a talar prosthesis and a tibial prosthesis, each of which has an articular surface and a bone engagement surface. Each bone engagement surface may have an anterior-posterior curvature and a medial-lateral curvature with a convex shape. A burr with a rotatable cutting element may be used to form a prepared surface on the talus or the tibia to receive the corresponding prosthesis. A cutting guide may be used to guide motion of the burr; the cutting guide may include a base and an arm movably coupled to the base. One of the base and the arm may have a guide surface, and the other may have a follower that slides along the guide surface to constrain motion of the burr such that the prepared surface has at least one concave curvature and one convex curvature.