Orthopedic Fastener Insertion Guide for Deep Angled Bone Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing orthopedic fastener insertion systems face challenges in maintaining positional guidance and control during deep, angled approaches in pelvic surgeries, particularly for acetabular fracture repair, while minimizing damage to surrounding tissues and preventing inadvertent misplacement.
Innovation Solution
An orthopedic fastener inserter with an insertion guide that includes a sidewall with a guide portion and a fastener connector portion, featuring a collet with spring-like fingers to retain the fastener head, allowing controlled insertion and release, and a drill guide for forming pilot holes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a deep, angled approach is used for pelvic reconstruction, then access to the fracture site is achieved, but positional guidance and control during fastener insertion is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an insertion guide as an intermediary device that bridges the discrepancy between the deep angled approach and precise fastener placement. The insertion guide includes a guide portion that extends through the soft tissue to the fracture site, providing a physical pathway and visual alignment reference that maintains positional guidance despite the challenging anatomical access route.
Solution Approach 2:
The insertion guide is divided into distinct functional segments: a handle portion for surgical manipulation, a guide portion for navigation through soft tissue, and a tip portion for engagement with the fracture site. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function while collectively solving the contradiction between access and precision.
2Ease of operation
If a deep, angled approach is used for pelvic reconstruction, then access to the fracture site is achieved, but damage to surrounding tissues increases
Solution Approach 1:
The insertion guide acts as a protective intermediary that channels the fastener insertion path through a controlled route. By establishing a pre-defined pathway with the guide portion, the system minimizes uncontrolled tissue disruption and reduces the risk of inadvertent damage to surrounding structures during the deep angled approach.
3Device complexity
If conventional fastener insertion is used, then simplicity is maintained, but inadvertent misplacement of fasteners occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The insertion guide serves as a mediator that enhances fastener placement reliability without fundamentally complicating the insertion process. The guide portion provides visual and physical alignment cues that steer the fastener along the correct trajectory, preventing inadvertent misplacement while maintaining operational simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The insertion guide is positioned and aligned before fastener insertion begins. This preliminary action establishes the correct spatial orientation and pathway in advance, ensuring that subsequent fastener placement occurs at the intended location with high reliability, while the overall process remains straightforward.
4Measurement precision
If an insertion guide with fastener retention mechanism is used, then fastener placement control is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The fastener retention feature is implemented as a localized element at the tip portion of the insertion guide, rather than complicating the entire device structure. This localized approach provides precise fastener placement control where needed while keeping the rest of the insertion guide simple and easy to manufacture.
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
Facilitates precise and controlled insertion of fasteners into bones, reducing the risk of misplacement and tissue damage, while maintaining alignment and stability during fracture repair.
Implementation Method 1
featuring a collet with spring-like fingers to retain the fastener head
Data Source
AI summary
An insertion guide for guiding a fastener having a head and a shaft. The insertion guide includes a sidewall constructed of a biocompatible material having an entrance end, an exit end, and a cavity extending from the entrance end to the exit end. The sidewall has a guide portion and a fastener connector portion. The guide portion of the sidewall extends from the entrance end toward the exit end, and the fastener connector portion of the sidewall extends from the exit end toward the guide portion. The sidewall in the guide portion is configured such that the cavity has a first cross-sectional distance greater than the head of the fastener. The sidewall in the fastener connector portion has a second cross-sectional distance greater than the shaft, and less than the head.