Surgical Retraction System with Rotatable Bone Contact Surfaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current surgical retraction systems used in cardiothoracic surgery, particularly for spreading the sternum, often require high forces, leading to rib deformation, splintering, and increased patient pain due to the need for excessive and rapid bone spreading or lifting, which can result in fractures and inadequate sensitivity during operations like arteria-mammaria bypass procedures.
Innovation Solution
The system employs multi-part retaining elements with rotatable and pivotable surfaces that adapt to the bone material, allowing for gentle retraction without manual adjustment, and a lifting device with a support mechanism that allows for variable positioning to minimize stress and trauma to the patient, enabling safer and more time-efficient procedures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If high forces are applied to spread the sternum and rib cage quickly, then surgical access is achieved faster, but rib deformation, splintering, and fractures occur leading to increased patient pain
Solution Approach 1:
The retention elements are designed with rotatable retention surfaces that can dynamically adapt their orientation during the retraction process. This allows the system to accommodate the natural curvature and movement of the sternum and ribs, distributing forces more evenly and reducing peak stresses that cause fractures
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the orientation parameter of the retention surfaces through rotation, allowing them to conform to the bone anatomy. This parameter adjustment enables gentler force application while maintaining effective retraction, reducing harmful effects on the bone structure
2Adaptability or versatility
If the retention surfaces are fixed in position, then the device structure is simpler, but they cannot adapt to the bone contact surfaces requiring manual intervention
Solution Approach 1:
The retention elements are designed to self-adjust through rotation about their mounting axis. The rotatable surfaces automatically conform to the bone contact surfaces during insertion and retraction, eliminating the need for manual intervention while maintaining relatively simple device structure
Solution Approach 2:
The dynamic rotation capability of the retention surfaces provides adaptability without excessive complexity. The single-axis rotation mechanism allows the surfaces to orient themselves appropriately during the retraction process, achieving good bone contact automatically
3Shape
If the retention surfaces are mounted perpendicular to the spreading plane, then the structure is straightforward, but they cannot conform to the curved bone surfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The rotatable retention surfaces perform the adaptation function automatically during insertion and retraction. The rotation about the mounting axis allows the surfaces to self-align with the bone contact surfaces without requiring surgeon intervention, achieving good conformity through the device's own operational movements
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A~2B
Figure 2C~2D
AI summary
The surgical retraction system (10) has support elements formed in multipart, where a part of the support elements forms a bearing body, which is held at a spreading arm (14), and where at the former part, another part of the support element in form of a support surface around an axis extended to a spreading level of the retraction system, is held in swiveling manner.