Bone Implants with Wire Mesh and Biocompatible Plate
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current strategies for correcting large bone defects, such as those in the cranium or long bones, face challenges with low bone formation and high risk of scaffold failure due to mechanical weakness and fragility of ceramic materials, and infections associated with metal meshes.
Innovation Solution
The development of bone implants comprising a biocompatible plate molded around a wire mesh support frame with customizable fastening points and a calcium phosphate cement composition, allowing for optimized structural support and bone integration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Shape
If metal meshes are used to provide structural support for bone growth, then the implant can be shaped to closely fit the defect, but low new bone formation and infections occur
Solution Approach 1:
The invention uses a composite structure combining a metal mesh support frame with a biocompatible plate material (such as calcium phosphate cement or ceramic). The metal mesh provides structural support and fit customization, while the biocompatible plate material promotes bone formation and reduces infection risk, resolving the contradiction between shape adaptability and biological compatibility.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the implant have different properties: the metal mesh framework provides mechanical strength and conformability to the defect shape, while the biocompatible plate material filling the spaces provides osteoconductivity and biological integration. This local differentiation of material properties allows simultaneous achievement of shape customization and improved bone formation.
2Reliability
If ceramic materials are used to provide structural support, then bone integration is improved, but the materials are mechanically weak and fragile leading to high risk of scaffold failure
Solution Approach 1:
The invention creates a composite material system where ceramic or biocompatible plate material is combined with a metal mesh framework. The ceramic provides excellent bone integration and osteoconductivity, while the metal mesh framework provides the necessary mechanical strength and structural support to prevent scaffold failure, thus resolving the contradiction between bone integration and mechanical strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The metal mesh framework creates a porous structure that allows bone ingrowth while maintaining mechanical integrity. The interconnected pores provide pathways for bone cells and blood vessels, enhancing bone integration, while the metal framework maintains structural strength to prevent collapse under load.
3Shape
If custom-made ceramic implants are manufactured in advance, then they can be precisely fitted to the defect, but the manufacturing process is complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The implant is divided into two separate components: a standardized metal mesh support frame that can be manufactured using common techniques and potentially adapted to different defect shapes, and a biocompatible plate material that is applied to the metal framework. This segmentation allows the metal mesh to be produced efficiently while still achieving custom fit through the combination with the biocompatible material.
Solution Approach 2:
The metal mesh support frame is prepared in advance with a configuration that can be adapted to the specific defect geometry. The biocompatible plate material is then applied to this pre-prepared framework during the surgical procedure, allowing precise fitting without the need for complex custom manufacturing of the entire implant beforehand.
Data Source
AI summary
A bone implant including a wire mesh support frame having a plurality of interconnected wire members and at least two fastening points in the form of retention eyelets connected to the support frame by at least one of the wire members, and a biocompatible plate formed about the support frame, the plate having a bore associated with each of the retention eyelets.