Knotless Soft Tissue Anchor with Pre-formed Suture Loops
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current surgical methods for attaching soft tissue to bone, such as in joint repairs, often require complex knot-tying procedures and may not provide secure fixation, especially in minimally invasive surgeries where precision and stability are critical.
Innovation Solution
The method involves forming bone tunnels and inserting anchors with suture strands that are secured using various implant devices, such as interference screws and locking implants, to create a knotless transosseous attachment, ensuring the suture ends are locked within the bone tunnels for stable tissue fixation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional knot-tying procedures are used to attach soft tissue to bone, then the attachment can be achieved, but the surgical procedure becomes complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts and eliminates the knot-tying step from the surgical procedure by using pre-formed loops on the suture that can be directly engaged with the bone tunnel, removing the complex knot-tying process while maintaining secure attachment
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism (the pre-formed loop structure on the suture) that mediates between the soft tissue and bone, allowing direct engagement without requiring complex knot-tying procedures
2Reliability
If traditional attachment methods are used, then soft tissue can be attached to bone, but the fixation stability is insufficient especially in minimally invasive surgeries
Solution Approach 1:
The suture is prepared in advance with pre-formed loops at its ends, allowing the surgeon to simply engage these loops with the bone tunnel without complex manipulation, thereby improving both stability and ease of operation in minimally invasive procedures
3Reliability
If complex knot-tying procedures are performed, then attachment can be achieved, but surgical time is increased and recovery is slowed
Solution Approach 1:
The invention removes the time-consuming knot-tying step entirely by using pre-formed loops that can be directly engaged with the bone tunnel, significantly reducing surgical time while maintaining secure attachment
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter of suture configuration from requiring knot-tying to having pre-formed loops, which fundamentally alters the time required for the attachment procedure while maintaining security
Data Source
AI summary
Devices and methods to attach soft tissue to bone include, for example, forming a bone tunnel in a bone, passing a suture through soft tissue, and inserting an anchor in the bone tunnel, wherein a distal portion of the anchor is positioned underneath the soft tissue, a proximal portion of the anchor is positioned beyond an edge of the soft tissue, the suture first portion extends from the distal portion of the anchor to the soft tissue, and the suture second portion extends from the proximal portion of the anchor to the soft tissue.