Expandable Textile Spinal Implant for Disc Height Restoration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current textile-based spinal implants, while offering tissue ingrowth and motion preservation, lack the ability to provide sufficient support and expansion within the intervertebral disc space, limiting their effectiveness in maintaining spinal mobility and disc height.
Innovation Solution
A combination pre-filled and in situ filled implant featuring a textile core with attached side pockets made of embroidered fabric, which can be expanded post-insertion by filling with biocompatible materials, allowing for minimally invasive surgical procedures and increased surface contact with vertebrae for better anchoring.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a textile-based implant is used to preserve motion and allow tissue ingrowth, then spinal mobility is maintained, but the implant lacks sufficient support and expansion capability within the intervertebral disc space
Solution Approach 1:
The implant transitions from a static pre-filled structure to a dynamic expandable structure through the addition of pockets that can be filled in situ, allowing the implant to adapt its volume and support characteristics after insertion while maintaining motion preservation capabilities
Solution Approach 2:
The implant is divided into a pre-filled core portion and expandable pocket portions, allowing the core to provide initial structural support while the pockets can be independently filled to enhance support and expansion capabilities without compromising the original motion-preserving function
2Strength
If a larger implant is used to provide sufficient support and expansion, then disc height and spinal mobility are improved, but the surgical procedure becomes more invasive requiring larger incisions
Solution Approach 1:
The implant core is pre-filled to provide initial structural integrity for insertion through minimally invasive approaches, while the pockets are prepared in advance to be filled in situ, allowing the final expanded size to be achieved without requiring a large incision for initial implantation
Solution Approach 2:
The pre-filled core is nested within the expandable pockets, allowing the compact core to be inserted through a small incision while the outer pockets can be expanded afterward to achieve the larger final implant dimensions needed for sufficient support
Data Source
AI summary
A combination pre-filled and in situ filled implant for the replacement of an intervertebral disc of the spine, including a textile core and a flange with apertures dimensioned to receive screws or other affixation elements. The combination pre-filled and in situ filled implant may also have attached side pockets comprised of extra layers of embroidered fabric. The pockets on the implant may serve a dual purpose: to facilitate insertion and to expand the dimensions of the implant after insertion.