Adjustable Knee Sensor Cover for Intraoperative Ligament Balancing
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing joint replacement surgeries, particularly total knee arthroplasty, face challenges in accurately balancing ligament forces and achieving symmetrical loading across the knee joint, leading to subjective and inconsistent clinical outcomes.
Innovation Solution
An intraoperative surgical system with reconfigurable sensor covers and force sensors is used to measure and balance ligament forces across the joint at multiple stages of the surgical procedure, providing objective data for surgeons to adjust and align prosthetic components for improved balance and alignment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If traditional gap balancing techniques are used, then the surgical procedure can be completed, but the measurement of ligament forces remains subjective and inconsistent
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces subjective mechanical gap assessment with objective force sensors that directly measure ligament forces. The sensor system substitutes traditional visual and tactile evaluation methods with quantitative force measurements, enabling precise and consistent measurement of ligament forces throughout the surgical procedure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements real-time feedback through force sensors that continuously monitor ligament forces during surgery. The system provides immediate feedback to the surgeon about force imbalances, allowing for dynamic adjustment of ligament releases and component positioning to achieve symmetrical loading forces across the knee joint.
2Adaptability or versatility
If ligament releases are performed prior to bone cuts, then fixed deformities can be corrected, but the timing for measuring and balancing ligament forces is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a dynamic sensor system with reconfigurable sensor covers that can be adjusted at different surgical stages. The sensor assembly can be repositioned and reconfigured to measure ligament forces at multiple time points including before and after ligament releases, bone cuts, and component implantation, providing adaptability throughout the surgical procedure.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor system is divided into modular components including sensor covers, force sensors, and support structures that can be independently configured and repositioned. This segmentation allows the system to be adapted to different measurement requirements at various surgical stages without requiring a completely different device configuration.
3Loss of information
If multiple sensors are positioned to measure forces at different locations, then comprehensive force balance data can be obtained, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a universal sensor platform that can measure forces at multiple locations through a coordinated array of force sensors. The sensor system is designed to capture comprehensive force balance data from different ligament locations simultaneously, providing complete information about medial-lateral and anterior-posterior force distributions across the knee joint.
Data Source
AI summary
An intraoperative surgical system for knee arthroplasty may be configured and/or reconfigurable to allow the surgical system to be inserted into different sized joint spaces during a surgical procedure. For example, the surgical system may include a sensor support body defining a platform, a force sensor, and a plurality of sensor covers each being configured to be detachably attached to the sensor support body. Each of the sensor covers can vary from each other in at least one characteristic. A selected one of the sensor covers can be placed over the platform, sandwiching the force sensor between the platform and sensor cover, to define a joint insertion block configured to be inserted into a tibiofemoral joint for measuring a force between a tibia and a femur defining the tibiofemoral joint.