Oscillating Bone Saw Blade Guard for Soft Tissue Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
During orthopaedic surgical procedures, oscillating bone saws often unintentionally damage surrounding soft tissues due to difficulty in isolating them from the cutting region, as they are attached to bone structures and can only be retracted a finite amount.
Innovation Solution
A bone saw tool with a bone saw blade guard that can be activated to reduce the cutting effectiveness of the saw blade when outside the designated cutting region, using a movable slat or bumper system to cover the cutting teeth or alter the blade's depth, thereby preventing damage to soft tissues.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If soft tissue is retracted to provide visualization and prevent damage, then the bone can be accessed for cutting, but the soft tissue can only be retracted a finite amount and may still be unintentionally damaged by the oscillating bone saw
Solution Approach 1:
A blade guard is introduced as an intermediary component between the oscillating bone saw blade and the surrounding soft tissue. The guard physically blocks the saw blade from contacting soft tissue structures, allowing the surgeon to cut bone with full oscillation amplitude while preventing harmful contact with adjacent tissues that cannot be fully retracted.
Solution Approach 2:
The blade guard is divided into multiple segmented components including a proximal guard portion and a distal guard portion that can independently position and adapt to different anatomical regions. This segmentation allows the guard to provide comprehensive protection around the cutting site while accommodating the specific geometry of the bone and surrounding soft tissue structures.
2Productivity
If the bone saw blade oscillates with full amplitude to efficiently cut bone, then cutting productivity is improved, but the risk of damaging unretracted soft tissue increases
Solution Approach 1:
The blade guard serves as a protective intermediary that enables the saw blade to maintain its full oscillation amplitude for efficient bone cutting while preventing the blade from contacting surrounding soft tissue. The guard absorbs or redirects any stray blade motion away from vulnerable tissues.
Solution Approach 2:
The blade guard is designed with dynamic positioning capabilities, allowing it to be adjusted and repositioned during the surgical procedure to accommodate different cutting angles, depths, and anatomical variations, thereby maintaining both cutting efficiency and tissue protection throughout the procedure.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates generally to orthopaedic surgical tools used to cut and/or resect a bone of a patient during an orthopaedic surgical procedure such as, for example, a joint replacement procedure.