Midfoot Bone Plate with Compression Slots for Fusion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current bone plates for fusing midfoot bones face challenges in maintaining compression, leading to undesirable gaps at joint lines due to difficulty in sustaining bone alignment during fixation, which can result in incomplete fusion and potential joint damage.
Innovation Solution
The development of bone plates preassembled with drill guides and screws that allow for multi-axial compression using compressing and locking screws, along with a bending tool to reshape the plate for precise fit and alignment, ensuring minimal spacing between bones for effective fusion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If bone plates are used to fix midfoot fractures, then bone alignment and fusion are achieved, but maintaining compression and preventing gaps at joint lines becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The bone plate is pre-formed with compression slots and pre-assembled with compressing screws that can be inserted to apply compression to the bone fragments before final fixation. This preliminary compression application ensures proper alignment is achieved and maintained during the surgical procedure.
Solution Approach 2:
The bone plate is divided into multiple segments with compression slots positioned at specific locations. Each compression slot can be independently accessed and compressed using dedicated compressing screws, allowing precise control over compression application at different sites along the bone plate.
2Manufacturing precision
If compression is applied to bone fragments, then alignment is improved, but sustaining compression until fixation becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
Compression is applied in advance using compressing screws inserted through compression slots before the final fixation process. The plate design allows this preliminary compression to be established and maintained throughout the surgical procedure until permanent fixation is achieved.
Solution Approach 2:
The compression mechanism is designed to be dynamically adjustable during surgery. Compressing screws can be tightened to apply compression, and the plate can be manipulated to maintain alignment, allowing the compression force to be sustained as needed during the fixation process.
3Stability of the object's composition
If gaps form at joint lines, then compression is lost, but this leads to incomplete fusion and potential joint damage
Solution Approach 1:
Compression slots are positioned and sized to ensure that when compressing screws are inserted, they immediately establish stable bone-to-bone contact at the joint lines before final fixation. This preliminary compression prevents gap formation that would otherwise occur during the fixation process.
Solution Approach 2:
The surgical instrument includes features that allow the surgeon to monitor and adjust compression in real-time. The design enables feedback on whether adequate compression is achieved, allowing immediate correction if gaps begin to form at the joint lines during the procedure.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for joining together a first, a second and a third bone part of a surgical patient includes obtaining a bone plate having a first, a second and a third portion arranged along a longitudinal axis. The first portion contains a first slot for receiving a first compressing screw. The second portion is adjacent to the first portion and contains a second slot for receiving a second compressing screw. The third portion is adjacent to the second portion and contains a threaded hole for receiving a locking screw. The method further includes positioning the first, second and third portions over the first, second and third bone parts. The method further includes inserting the locking screw into the threaded hole and into the third bone part, inserting the second compressing screw into the second slot and into the second bone part, and inserting the first compressing screw into the first slot and into the first bone part, thereby urging the first, second and third bone parts together.