Soft Tissue Anchor Inserter for Small-Hole Bone Fixation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current systems for repairing torn plantar plates and other soft tissues or bones are bulky, complex, and require multiple large through holes, which can weaken the construct and fail to deploy anchors in suboptimal bone quality, leading to a high non-deployment rate.
Innovation Solution
A compact and maneuverable instrument with a guide portion and inserter system that deploys soft anchors using a thin-walled sleeve, allowing tactile confirmation and avoiding reliance on native bone quality for deployment, facilitating the joining of soft tissues and bones without multiple large holes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If current systems use multiple large through holes to join tissue and bone, then the joining function is achieved, but the bone is weakened and the system becomes bulky and complex
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the joining function into separate components: a soft tissue anchor, a bone anchor, and a suture, eliminating the need for large through holes. Each component is optimized for its specific function, allowing minimal bone intervention while achieving secure joining.
Solution Approach 2:
The soft tissue anchor is deployed through a small bone hole using a guide needle, with the suture passing through both anchors. This nested deployment approach allows complex functionality to be achieved through small access points, reducing bone trauma and system complexity.
2Reliability
If all-suture soft anchor implants rely on bone quality for deployment, then anchoring is achieved in good bone, but deployment fails in suboptimal bone quality with up to ten percent non-deployment rate
Solution Approach 1:
The bone anchor is designed with localized engagement features that adapt to different bone densities. The anchor geometry and engagement mechanism are optimized to achieve reliable anchoring in both dense and less dense bone, eliminating dependence on uniform bone quality for successful deployment.
3Ease of operation
If current systems require multiple through holes per connection, then the joining function is achieved, but the construct is weakened and the instrument is bulky
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts the large through hole requirement by using a soft tissue anchor that can be deployed through a small bone hole. The suture passes through this small hole and secures the soft tissue without requiring large bone openings, thereby maintaining construct strength while improving instrument maneuverability.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to instruments, implant systems, and methods for joining bone and/or tissue portions. The instrument includes a handle portion; an inserter portion comprising an insertion portion and a tip portion; a guide portion comprising a medial end component and a distal end component, the guide portion extending from a distal end portion of the handle portion to a bone engagement end of the inserter portion; a passageway extending through the inserter portion from the distal end of the handle portion to the bone engagement end of the inserter portion; and a hole that extends from an exterior surface of the handle portion and the guide portion to the passageway, wherein the insertion portion and the tip portion of the inserter portion are positioned past the distal end component of the guide portion when the handle portion, the inserter portion, and the guide portion are mated.