Patient-Specific Glenoid Depth Control System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current shoulder arthroplasty procedures lack precise patient-specific instruments for accurately aligning and reaming bones during anatomic and reverse shoulder replacements, leading to potential misalignment and over-reaming issues.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising a guiding wire attached to the bone, a tubular depth guide with patient-specific length, and a reaming device with an elongate recess and depth control window, allowing for visual confirmation of patient-specific reaming depth to prevent over-reaming and ensure accurate alignment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional reaming instruments are used without patient-specific depth control, then the surgical procedure is simpler and faster to perform, but the reaming depth precision deteriorates leading to over-reaming and misalignment
Solution Approach 1:
The patient-specific depth guide is pre-configured with the exact reaming depth required for each patient's anatomy before surgery. The guide is attached to the guiding wire in advance, and the reaming device is pre-marked with depth indicators, eliminating the need for intraoperative depth calculations and measurements.
Solution Approach 2:
The tubular depth guide acts as an intermediary component between the guiding wire and the reaming device. It provides a physical reference that mediates the depth control function, allowing the surgeon to visually monitor reaming progress through the tube while maintaining a simple operational workflow.
2Measurement precision
If visual depth monitoring is implemented through a depth control window, then the reaming depth accuracy is improved, but the device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The depth control window utilizes visual indicators such as color-coded markings or transparent/opaque sections that change appearance at specific depth thresholds. This allows the surgeon to quickly assess reaming depth through color or transparency changes without requiring complex electronic sensors or measurement systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The depth control window provides a visual copy or representation of the reaming depth status. By creating an optical window that displays the position of the reaming tool relative to the depth guide, the system replicates depth information in a visually accessible format without requiring direct physical measurement.
3Manufacturing precision
If a tubular depth guide with patient-specific length is used, then the alignment accuracy is improved, but the surgical procedure time increases due to additional setup steps
Solution Approach 1:
The tubular depth guide serves multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as a depth reference, a alignment guide, and a protective sheath for the guiding wire. The reaming device also serves dual purposes as both a cutting tool and a visual display device through its integrated depth control window, reducing the number of separate components and setup steps required.
Data Source
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Figure 3A~3B
AI summary
A system for reaming a bone including a guiding wire (50) configured to be attached to the bone; a tubular depth guide (90) configured to cover at least a portion of the guiding wire, the tubular depth guide including a first end configured to abut the bone, and a second end opposite the first end; a reaming device (52) including an elongate recess (96) therein that extends between a reaming tool (97) of the reaming device and an interior of the reaming device; a depth control window (102) formed in an exterior surface of the reaming device; wherein the elongate recess is configured to receive each of the guiding wire and depth guide therein; the elongate recess includes a reduced diameter section that defines a shoulder (100), the shoulder is designed to abut the second end of the tubular depth guide to control a depth to which the bone is reamed, and the depth control window provides visual access to the second end of the tubular depth guide to determine whether a reaming depth has been reached.