Patient-Specific Implantable Plate for Joint Fracture Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fixed-shape implants for joint fractures cause friction on soft tissues, lack sufficient fixation options, and result in hardware failures, tendon ruptures, and malunions, with patient-specific implants being delayed due to time-consuming design and manufacturing processes.
Innovation Solution
A method for creating patient-specific and fracture-specific implantable plates using 3D printing, involving 3D representation, bone fragment identification, reduction simulation, and calculation of optimal parameter values for screw holes and orientations, with optional use of a positioning guide device.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If patient-specific implants are designed and manufactured, then treatment precision and patient outcomes are improved, but manufacturing time and production delay increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-manufacturing patient-specific implants and positioning guide devices using 3D printing technology. The workflow includes: (1) obtaining 3D representations of patient bone structures from imaging data, (2) identifying bone fragments and simulating reduction, (3) calculating optimal implant parameters including screw hole positions and orientations, and (4) manufacturing the customized implant and positioning guide device before surgery. This allows the surgical team to have everything ready in advance, reducing intraoperative time and improving precision while managing the trade-off through efficient digital workflows.
2Ease of manufacture
If fixed-shape implants are used, then manufacturing simplicity and availability are improved, but adaptation to individual patient anatomy and fracture patterns deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by customizing specific parameters of the implant based on the individual patient's anatomy and fracture pattern. Instead of using a generic fixed-shape implant, the system: (1) identifies the specific bone fragments and their spatial relationships, (2) calculates optimal screw hole positions, orientations, and diameters tailored to the patient's bone structure, and (3) generates a patient-specific implant design that matches the unique requirements of that patient's fracture. This maintains manufacturing feasibility through 3D printing while achieving high adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies parameter changes by systematically varying multiple implant parameters to optimize the solution for each patient. The system calculates and adjusts: (1) implant dimensions and shape, (2) screw hole positions and orientations, (3) screw hole diameters, and (4) other fixation parameters. These parameters are optimized based on the 3D bone model and fracture characteristics, allowing the same base implant design to be adapted to numerous different patient scenarios through parameter modification rather than requiring entirely different implant designs.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention concerns a method for obtaining an implantable plate for healing a fractured joint of a patient, comprising the steps of: 1) providing a 3D representation of a bone structure in a zone around a joint fracture, the zone comprising essentially all fragments of broken or ruptured bones and at least the ends of unbroken bones which form part of the fractured joint; 2) identifying different bone fragments within said 3D representation; 3) simulating a reduction of said bone fragments into a full joint; 4) calculating optimal parameter values for an implantable plate; 5) obtaining the implantable plate taking into account the calculated parameter values, whereby in step 3, the reduction is simulated by automatedly fitting positions and orientations of said bone fragments to a 3D representation of a healthy joint of said patient.