Modular Surgical Suture With Thermosensitive Barbs
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current surgical sutures lack variability in thread thickness and gauge, leading to instability when inserted into human tissues due to the lack of differently oriented barbs and arrangements, which is not adequately addressed by existing technologies.
Innovation Solution
A modular surgical thread system composed of micro-units made from thermosensitive materials, assembled using advanced technologies like micro- and nano-technologies, and welded together using controlled temperature gradients to create sutures with specific barb orientations and varying diameters, ensuring consistent gauge and enhanced tissue interaction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If traditional extrusion methods are used to produce surgical sutures, then production efficiency is maintained, but the gauge variability and thickness inconsistency worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The suture is divided into multiple modular units that can be assembled in a predetermined sequence. Each unit is manufactured with precise gauge control, and the modular assembly process maintains this precision while enabling efficient production through standardized components.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the manufacturing approach from continuous extrusion to modular assembly, allowing precise control of gauge parameters in each unit while maintaining production efficiency through standardized manufacturing processes for the modules.
2Reliability
If barbs are distributed with stochastic arrangement, then manufacturing complexity is reduced, but tissue stability and functionality worsen
Solution Approach 1:
Different sections of the suture can have different barb arrangements (unidirectional, bidirectional, stochastic) tailored to specific tissue requirements. Each modular unit is designed with locally optimized barb patterns that match the functional needs of different anatomical regions.
Solution Approach 2:
The modular design allows dynamic adjustment of barb arrangements along the suture length, enabling transition between different barb patterns (e.g., from unidirectional to bidirectional) to match the dynamic requirements of different tissue zones and functional demands.
3Reliability
If free multifilament sutures are used, then ease of insertion is maintained, but shifting and instability in tissues worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The suture is segmented into modular units with barbs integrated into each unit. This segmentation provides mechanical interlocking with tissue at multiple points along the suture length, preventing shifting while maintaining the flexibility and ease of insertion characteristic of free sutures.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses composite construction combining smooth connecting sections with barbed anchoring sections in a single suture. This composite design provides both the ease of insertion of smooth sutures and the tissue anchoring stability of barbed sutures, eliminating the need to choose between the two.
4Adaptability or versatility
If unidirectional barbs are used, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but adaptability to different surgical needs worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The modular suture system is designed to be universal, capable of providing multiple barb configurations (unidirectional, bidirectional, stochastic) and different gauge patterns within a single product line. This multi-functionality allows the same basic modular platform to serve diverse surgical applications including skin closure, tendon repair, and tissue lifting.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The modular thread system provides sutures with precise control over barb orientation and diameter, reducing variability and enhancing stability and functionality in tissue interaction, addressing the limitations of traditional extrusion methods.
Implementation Method 1
The specific material of which the individual modular units are obtained by moulding (preferably, but not exclusively, a thermoplastic polymer) responds to the specific temperature gradient with a shrinkage in its original volume such as to render disassembly impossible.
Implementation Method 2
performing a subsequent thermal treatment in a welding oven, where the individual basic units, once they are duly assembled together, are stably welded to one another following upon a well-defined temperature gradient that depends upon the material used.
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention relates to the sector of aesthetic medicine, and to the materials and methods for carrying out operations of general and specialized surgery, of plastic, dermatological, and aesthetic surgery, of gynaecological and/or obstetric surgery, as well as for rhinoplasty and urological and proctological surgery. More specifically, it regards a thread or suture for operations of general and specialized surgery such as plastic, dermatological, and aesthetic surgery, which is obtained by assembling together modular micro- units of well-defined shape and size, made of thermosensitive material, with are equipped with co¬ operating connection means that enable coupling of said micro-units to one another in the production stage to obtain either smooth sutures or sutures provided with protuberances or barbs or protrusions, or different forms of sutures, or combinations thereof, according to the various multiple ways in which the specific modular units can be assembled or slotted together to achieve the desired length.