Spliced Tail Suture Construct for Rotator Cuff Repair
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Solution Overview
Problem
The SpeedBridge™ technique faces difficulties in simultaneously shuttling two FiberTape® tails through the rotator cuff, making the surgical repair process cumbersome.
Innovation Solution
A surgical suture construct with spliced tails, where the middle region has a larger diameter and the tail regions have a smaller diameter, allowing easier insertion into instruments and tissue, and the splice can be cut to form individual tails for secure fixation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If two separate FiberTape® tails are used for SpeedBridge™ construct, then secure fixation is achieved, but the difficulty of shuttling through tissue and instruments increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines two separate FiberTape® tails into a single spliced construct with a thin middle region. This merging allows the suture to be shuttled through tissue and instruments as one unit, reducing the difficulty of passage while maintaining the two-tail configuration for secure fixation after the spliced region is cut
2Strength
If regular diameter suture is used, then strength is maintained, but the ease of insertion into instruments and tissue decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating a spliced region with a smaller diameter in the middle portion of the suture, while the tail regions maintain their original larger diameter. This localized change in geometry allows easier passage through narrow instrument channels and tissue while preserving the strength characteristics of the full-diameter tails for load-bearing fixation
Data Source
Figure 1A~1D
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
A surgical construct having a flexible strand (2, 4, 6) with both opposing ends (4, 6) terminating in a same single tail (11). The middle region has a first diameter and the opposing tail regions have a second diameter, which is smaller than the first diameter. The tail regions may have similar or different diameters. Because of the thin spliced tail regions, the suturing construct of the present invention can be easily inserted into suture/tape passing and retrieving instruments and passed through soft tissue (such as a rotator cuff). Once the suturing construct has been passed through tissue, the splice may be cut to allow the suture/tape to have again individual tails.