Operating Table Base Station for Low-Pressure Cranial Fixation
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current neurosurgical devices using high-pressure pins are unsafe for young children and infants due to the risk of skull fracture and cranial movement during surgery, limiting their eligibility for intracranial neurosurgery and image guidance technology.
Innovation Solution
A base station assembly with a circular base secured to the operating room table, featuring an adjustable vertical support for a neurosurgical head holder and moveable clamps for surgical accessories, allowing for surgeon-controlled adjustability without assistance, using multiple low-pressure pins for cranial stabilization and supporting various surgical accessories like brain retractors and image guidance frames.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If high-pressure pins are used to secure the patient's head, then the head is stabilized during surgery, but the skull may fracture or penetrate in young children and infants
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the pressure parameter from high to low, using multiple low-pressure pins instead of fewer high-pressure pins. This parameter change allows the pins to distribute the stabilizing force across a wider area, preventing skull fracture while maintaining cranial stabilization during surgery.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the single high-pressure pin system into multiple low-pressure pin systems. By dividing the stabilization function across multiple pins, each exerting lower pressure, the system achieves the same stabilizing effect without the harmful concentrated pressure that causes skull fracture in pediatric patients.
2Reliability
If rigid skeletal fixation is used to prevent cranial movement, then surgical safety is improved, but young children are excluded from neurosurgical procedures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the pressure parameter to accommodate pediatric patients while maintaining surgical safety. By using low-pressure pins, the system adapts to the thinner, more malleable skulls of children and infants, expanding the patient age range without compromising the reliability of cranial fixation during neurosurgical procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The base station assembly creates a universal system that serves both pediatric and adult patients. The adjustable vertical support member and multiple pin configuration allow the same device to provide safe, effective cranial stabilization across different patient populations, making neurosurgical procedures accessible to all ages.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple surgical accessories are attached to the base station, then surgical functionality is enhanced, but the risk of unintentional dislodgement increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs selectively moveable clamps that can be dynamically adjusted and locked into position. These clamps allow surgical accessories to be securely attached when needed while remaining movable when not in use, reducing the risk of unintentional dislodgement while maintaining full surgical functionality throughout the procedure.
Data Source
AI summary
A base station assembly for an operating room table is disclosed. In one embodiment, the base station assembly includes a base station that is secured to the operating room table. The base station includes an arcuate rail member with a selectively moveable clamp attached thereto. A vertical support arm extends from the selectively moveable clamp to provide selective attachment to a surgical accessory, such as a retractor arm, armrest, or image guidance reference frame. The base station assembly provides surgical accessory support that may be moved and adjusted by a surgeon at any time during an operation without contaminating a surgical field and without assistance from circulating operating room personnel.