Articulating Orthopedic Cutting Head for Small-Incision Bone Cavities
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing orthopedic procedures require large incisions and damage to soft tissues to access bone cavities, prolonging healing and rehabilitation time, and existing instruments are costly and inefficient for cleaning larger cavities without separate boring and reaming tools.
Innovation Solution
An orthopedic instrument with an elongated hollow shaft and a rotatable cutting head that transitions between straight and angled configurations, allowing it to form and clean bone cavities larger than the incision, using a single device for both cutting and reaming.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a large incision is made to access bone cavities, then the surgeon has excellent view and open access for instruments, but the damage to soft tissue and muscles increases, lengthening healing and rehabilitation time
Solution Approach 1:
The instrument is divided into distinct functional segments: a hollow shaft for access, a cutting head for cavity formation, and a reaming attachment for cleaning. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function while minimizing overall tissue disruption.
Solution Approach 2:
The cutting head and reaming attachment are nested within the hollow shaft, allowing the instrument to be inserted through a small incision in a compact form. The cutting head can be deployed to create a cavity larger than the incision, and the reaming attachment can be inserted through the hollow shaft to clean the cavity, eliminating the need for separate instruments.
2Manufacturing precision
If separate boring and reaming instruments are used to clean large bone cavities, then the cavity can be properly formed and cleaned, but the device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The instrument combines multiple functions (cavity formation and cleaning) into a single device. The hollow shaft serves as both the delivery mechanism and the pathway for the reaming attachment, while the cutting head and reaming attachment work sequentially to achieve both cavity formation and cleaning without requiring separate instruments.
Solution Approach 2:
The hollow shaft serves multiple functions: as a protective sheath during insertion, as a pathway for deploying the cutting head, and as a conduit for inserting the reaming attachment. This multi-functionality reduces the number of separate instruments needed while maintaining the ability to perform both cavity formation and cleaning effectively.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to an orthopedic instrument. The orthopedic instrument includes an elongated hollow shaft having a proximal end and a distal end. The orthopedic instrument also includes a rod having a proximal end and a distal end. The rod is positioned at least partially within a lumen of the elongated hollow shaft. The orthopedic instrument also includes a cutting head having a proximal end and a distal end, wherein the proximal end of the cutting head is coupled to the distal end of the rod. The cutting head is rotatably coupled to the distal end of the elongated hollow shaft between the proximal end of the cutting head and the distal end of the cutting head. A movement of the rod within the lumen of the elongated hollow shaft in a distal direction causes cutting head to transition from a straight configuration to an angled configuration.