Expandable Intramedullary Nail Locking Without Additional Incisions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional intramedullary nails require additional incisions for bicortical bone screw locking, increasing infection risk and complicating minimally invasive surgeries, and lack efficient mechanisms for preventing axial rotation and translation.
Innovation Solution
An expandable intramedullary nail system with integrated distal and proximal locking mechanisms, using expandable fixation members and anchors that can be deployed mechanically to secure the nail within the intramedullary canal without additional incisions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional bicortical bone screws are used for locking, then the nail can be secured in the bone, but additional incisions are required increasing infection risk and surgical complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The locking mechanism is merged with the nail body itself, forming an integrated system where the nail includes built-in locking components (such as locking arms or spikes) that are part of the same implant. This eliminates the need for separate bicortical bone screws and additional incisions, as the locking function is combined with the primary nail structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The nail is designed to perform its own locking function through self-contained mechanisms. The locking components are integrated into the nail body and can be deployed or activated without requiring separate surgical steps or additional hardware, allowing the nail to secure itself within the medullary canal using the existing bone structure.
2Reliability
If additional bicortical bone screws are inserted through holes in the nail, then the nail achieves desired locking, but the surgery becomes time-consuming and error-prone
Solution Approach 1:
The locking mechanism is pre-integrated into the nail body during manufacturing, so that the locking components are already in place and ready for deployment. This preliminary preparation eliminates the need for intraoperative assembly of separate locking components, reducing surgical time while maintaining reliable locking stability.
Solution Approach 2:
By combining the locking function with the nail body into a single integrated implant, the surgical procedure eliminates multiple steps for inserting and positioning separate bone screws. The merged design allows for faster, more straightforward installation while achieving the same locking stability.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the intramedullary nail is made minimally invasive, then infection risk is reduced, but traditional locking mechanisms require additional incisions
Solution Approach 1:
The nail incorporates self-contained locking mechanisms that allow it to secure itself within the medullary canal without requiring additional surgical incisions. The integrated locking components can be deployed through the existing access point, maintaining minimal invasive capabilities while eliminating the need for extra skin incisions that would increase infection risk.
Solution Approach 2:
The locking function is merged with the nail body, creating a single integrated implant that can be installed through a single access point. This combination eliminates the need for separate incisions for bone screw insertion, thereby reducing the number of skin openings and associated infection risks while maintaining ease of operation.
Data Source
AI summary
Intramedullary systems, expandable intramedullary nails, expandable anchors, and methods of using the same. The intramedullary system may include an expandable intramedullary nail configured to extend into an intramedullary canal of a long bone and/or one or more expandable anchors configured to extend at an angle transverse to the intramedullary nail. The intramedullary nails and/or anchors may include one or more integrated expansion mechanisms that allow for insertion in a contracted configuration and expansion into a deployed configuration to lock the relative position and prevent axial rotation and translation of the system.