Expandable Corpectomy Spine Implant Height Adjustment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current spine implants for corpectomy surgery, such as cages made of titanium or stainless steel, are inadequate due to limitations in accommodating varying spinal heights and providing stable mechanical reconstruction post-vertebral body removal.
Innovation Solution
A height-adjustable (expandable) corpectomy cage system comprising two cylindrical components with cooperating structures for incremental height adjustment and fixation, paired with a plate for anterior fixation and bone graft insertion, allowing for customizable fit between vertebral bodies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If fixed-height cages are used, then manufacturing is simplified, but adaptability to varying spinal heights is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The cage is designed with expandable features allowing it to change height dynamically. The cage includes an inner cage and an outer cage with expansion mechanisms that enable adjustment of the cage height to match varying spinal defect dimensions, transforming a static fixed-height structure into a dynamic adjustable one.
Solution Approach 2:
The cage structure incorporates mechanisms to change its dimensional parameters post-implantation. By utilizing bone growth and remodeling, the cage can undergo parameter changes in height and volume, allowing adaptation to different spinal heights and providing a customizable fit without requiring multiple fixed-size implants.
2Adaptability or versatility
If custom-fit cages are designed for each patient, then adaptability improves, but device complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The cage is divided into separable components including an inner cage and an outer cage that can be assembled together. This segmentation allows for modular construction where standard components can be combined in different configurations to achieve custom-fit requirements without manufacturing entirely custom implants for each patient.
Solution Approach 2:
The expandable cage design provides dynamic adjustment capability through mechanical expansion mechanisms and biological bone growth integration, enabling a single cage design to adapt to various patient-specific dimensions without requiring complex custom manufacturing for each case.
3Adaptability or versatility
If expandable cage mechanisms are added, then adaptability to varying heights improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The expandable mechanism is achieved through segmentation into inner and outer cage components with simplified connection interfaces. This modular approach allows height adjustment functionality to be added without creating overly complex monolithic structures, as each segment can be manufactured separately and assembled.
Solution Approach 2:
The cage incorporates self-expanding capabilities through integration with the patient's own bone growth and remodeling processes. The biological environment provides the expansion force and structural support, reducing the need for complex active mechanical expansion mechanisms while still achieving height adjustability.
Data Source
AI summary
A corpectomy implant comprises a height/length-adjustable (expandable) cage and plate. The plate is mounted to the cage once height of the cage has been set. The cage has a first component and a second component that is movable with respect to the first component in order to increase height of the cage. The first and second components have cooperating structure that provides discreet cage height increments. The first component has a superior end configured to grip a superior vertebral body, while the second component has an inferior end configured to grip an inferior vertebral body, the superior end attached to the superior end of the plate, and the inferior end attached to the inferior end of the plate. The plate has holes for anterior fixation of the plate to superior and inferior vertebral bodies. Plates of incremental sizes accommodate differing heights of the cage.