Spinal Interbody Spacer with Contoured Convex Surfaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional spinal implants may be dislodged from their intended position between vertebrae due to patient movement before sufficient bone growth occurs, leading to instability and misalignment after discectomy.
Innovation Solution
A spinal interbody spacer with a contoured design featuring convex vertebral engaging surfaces and pyramidal protrusions to provide stability and facilitate bone ingrowth, while minimizing the risk of dislocation, including atraumatic blunt noses and planar surfaces for secure engagement and integration with the vertebrae.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If conventional prosthetic implants are inserted between adjacent vertebrae to maintain disc spacing and lordosis, then the space between vertebrae is maintained, but the implant may be dislodged or moved from its desired implantation location due to patient movement before sufficient bone growth occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The vertebral engaging surfaces are divided into multiple distinct surface regions with different surface characteristics. Each region has specific features (protrusions, grooves, flat areas) designed to engage with vertebral bone in specific locations, providing segmented contact points that prevent dislocation while allowing bone growth through designated pathways.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the vertebral engaging surfaces have locally optimized characteristics. Some areas have protrusions for bony engagement, others have flat surfaces for cartilage contact, and others have grooves for bone ingrowth. This local differentiation ensures stable implantation while facilitating the specific biological processes needed for fusion.
2Stability of the object's composition
If the spacer body is designed with convex vertebral engaging surfaces to provide stability, then bone growth is facilitated, but the complexity of the device structure increases
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple functional features are merged into the vertebral engaging surfaces themselves. The protrusions, grooves, flat areas, and convex contours are all integrated into the spacer body as part of the engaging surfaces, eliminating the need for separate stabilization components and reducing overall device complexity while maintaining stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The vertebral engaging surfaces serve multiple functions simultaneously: they provide mechanical stability through convex contours, facilitate bone growth through grooves and flat areas, enable vertebral engagement through protrusions, and prevent dislocation through their geometric configuration. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional components.
Data Source
AI summary
A spinal spacer for engagement between vertebrae includes a body having a substantially contoured first end surface at a distal end and a second end surface opposite thereto at a proximal end. The body extends between the first and second end surfaces to define top and bottom vertebral engaging surfaces that are opposed to one another. The body extends between the top and bottom vertebral engaging surfaces to define opposed side surfaces. The top and bottom vertebral engaging surfaces intersect with the side surfaces to provide a substantially quadrilateral cross-section with rounded corners. The top and bottom vertebral engaging surfaces have a substantially streamlined convex profile. The surfaces converge at the distal end to define a substantially atraumatic blunt nose having a tip configured with planar and/or convex surfaces.