Intramedullary Rod and Blade Assembly for Distal Fracture Fixation
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing bone fixation systems, such as intramedullary nail and blade assemblies, face challenges in securely fixing fractures near the proximal or distal ends of bones due to weaknesses in the 'L-shape' and cross-like configurations, which limit their ability to treat fractures close to the distal end of bones like the femur, and may lead to instability and fatigue fractures.
Innovation Solution
An intramedullary rod and blade assembly that eliminates the need for a blade passageway in the nail, allowing for central coupling without extending beyond the blade's outer flanges, enabling more distal implantation and providing a stronger fixation by avoiding weaknesses in the nail's design, thus allowing for more stable fixation of distal fractures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If an intramedullary nail with a blade passageway is used (prior art design), then the blade can be coupled to the nail, but the nail must extend past the blade creating an L-shape or cross-shape configuration that limits distal fracture treatment and creates structural weakness
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the blade passageway from the intramedullary nail, extracting the problematic feature that caused the nail to extend past the blade. This eliminates the L-shape or cross-shape configurations and allows the nail to terminate at or before the blade level, strengthening the implant while maintaining coupling capability through alternative means.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of having the nail extend past the blade (traditional design), the invention inverts this relationship by configuring the nail to terminate at or before the blade level. This inversion resolves the structural weakness and enables treatment of more distal fractures without compromising implant strength.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the intramedullary nail extends past the blade (prior art configuration), then coupling is achieved, but this prevents positioning the blade at more distal parts of the bone
Solution Approach 1:
By removing the blade passageway requirement, the invention extracts the constraint that forced the nail to extend past the blade. This enables surgeons to position the blade at more distal locations on the bone without the nail protruding beyond it, expanding the treatable fracture range.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the spatial relationship between nail and blade from nail-extending-beyond-blade to nail-terminating-at-blade-level. This dimensional reconfiguration allows the blade to be positioned more distally while maintaining proper coupling, thereby increasing adaptability for distal fracture treatment.
3Ease of manufacture
If a blade passageway is included in the intramedullary nail, then coupling mechanism is provided, but this creates an area of weakness prone to fatigue fracture
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the blade passageway from the nail design, removing the structural weakness it created. By eliminating this passageway, the nail achieves improved resistance to fatigue fracture while coupling is still achieved through alternative means such as external fixation or direct apposition without requiring the nail to extend beyond the blade.
Data Source
AI summary
Intramedullary rod and blade assemblies and methods of implanting said assemblies are disclosed herein. The assemblies provided herein are useful in treating distal, proximal fractures, among other conditions, in large bones including, but not limited to: femurs, tibias, and humeri. Preferred assemblies can include an intramedullary rod having a proximal end and coupling means configured to securely attach to a blade, such that no portion of the rod or the coupling means extend into the fractured fragment beyond the blade. Further preferred assemblies include intramedullary rods that connect in the center of the internal blade, or substantially so, such that the rod and blade form a “T-shape,” or substantially so.