Glenoid Anchor Guide with Pivoting Rim Engagement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current surgical guide technologies face challenges in achieving proper angular alignment of anchor placement in glenoid procedures, particularly in arthroscopic surgeries, due to the narrow rim of the glenoid cavity and soft tissue constraints, leading to potential off-axis anchor placement and increased complexity with curved cannulas.
Innovation Solution
An elongated guide tube with a pivotally attached rim engagement member, featuring a V-shape and alignment indicators, allows for precise angular positioning and alignment with the glenoid rim, ensuring accurate passage of instruments and anchors, and includes a detent mechanism for tactile feedback during alignment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a straight tubular cannula is used for anchor placement, then the structure is simple, but achieving proper angular alignment is difficult and off-axis placement occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The guide tube is made pivotally movable relative to the cannula, allowing dynamic adjustment of the guide tube's angular orientation. This enables the surgeon to align the guide tube precisely with the glenoid rim while maintaining the simple straight cannula structure, resolving the contradiction between structural simplicity and alignment precision.
2Manufacturing precision
If curved cannulas are used to improve alignment, then angular positioning is improved, but device complexity and difficulty in maintaining position increase
Solution Approach 1:
The device is segmented into two separate components: a simple straight cannula and a guide tube with angular adjustment capability. This segmentation allows the guide tube to provide precise angular positioning while the cannula remains structurally simple, avoiding the complexity of curved cannulas.
3Device complexity
If the rim engagement member is rigidly fixed to the guide tube, then structural simplicity is maintained, but angular adjustment capability is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The rim engagement member is pivotally attached to the guide tube, creating a dynamic connection that allows angular adjustment. This pivotal attachment enables the engagement member to adapt to different angular positions while maintaining structural simplicity, resolving the contradiction between structural simplicity and adaptability.
4Manufacturing precision
If alignment indicators are added to the guide, then alignment precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Alignment indicators such as colored marks or visual indicators are added to the guide tube and engagement member. These indicators provide clear visual feedback for proper alignment without adding mechanical complexity, resolving the contradiction between alignment precision and device complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A guide provides for placing a suture anchor into an outer rim of a glenoid cavity of a patient adjacent an edge of a glenoid labrum. The guide comprises an elongated guide tube having an axial lumen with a distal opening a rim engagement member pivotally attached to the elongated tube adjacent the distal opening. The rim engagement member has a first contact surface and a second contact surface each of which are distal of the guide tube and are separated from each other and disposed on opposite lateral sides of the guide tube whereby to allow placement of the contact member over the glenoid rim, with subsequent angular positioning of the guide tube and passage of an instrument down the lumen to the labrum.