Single-Piece Stent with Flexible and Stiffening Sections for Orthopedic Surgery
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing stent retractors and distractors have multiple components, making them expensive and limited to single-use applications, and require separate instruments for bone distraction, which restricts their versatility in surgical procedures.
Innovation Solution
A single-piece stent with radially flexible and stiffening sections allows for both retraction and distraction functions, enabling it to be used as a disposable device with adjustable diameter and enhanced stability, incorporating features like lacing devices and bone anchoring elements for expanded surgical applications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If multiple components are used to create stent retractors and distractors, then the retraction function is achieved, but the device complexity increases and manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple separate components (stent, retractor elements, distractor mechanisms) into a single integrated stent structure. The stent is designed with radially expandable sections that can perform both retraction and distraction functions, eliminating the need for separate instruments and reducing overall device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The stent is designed as a multi-functional device that can serve as both a retractor and a distractor. By incorporating radially flexible sections and stiffening sections within a single structure, the device can perform multiple surgical functions (retraction of tissues and distraction of bones) without requiring separate specialized instruments.
2Reliability
If multiple components are used in stent retractors, then the retraction capability is provided, but the ease of manufacture decreases and disposability is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates multiple functional components into a single stent structure that can be manufactured as one piece. This unified design simplifies the manufacturing process, reduces assembly steps, and enables the device to be produced as a disposable item without the complexity of assembling multiple separate components.
Solution Approach 2:
The stent is divided into distinct functional sections (radially flexible sections and stiffening sections) within a single continuous structure. This segmentation allows each section to be optimized for its specific function while maintaining ease of manufacture as a single integrated component, facilitating both production and disposal.
3Area of stationary object
If a stent retractor is used for retraction, then the operating area is extended, but the adaptability for other surgical functions is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The stent is designed with dual functionality, serving as both a retractor to extend the operating area and a distractor for bone distraction procedures. The radially expandable structure with both flexible and stiffening sections enables the device to adapt to different surgical requirements, including soft tissue retraction and hard tissue distraction, within a single instrument.
Solution Approach 2:
The stent incorporates radially flexible sections that allow dynamic adjustment of the device's configuration. This dynamic capability enables the stent to transition between different functional states (retraction mode and distraction mode) by adjusting the radial expansion of specific sections, thereby increasing adaptability to various surgical procedures.
4Reliability
If separate distraction instruments are used through the access canal, then bone distraction is achieved, but the device complexity and number of instruments increase
Solution Approach 1:
The stent integrates both retraction and distraction functions within a single device structure. The stiffening sections of the stent can be utilized to provide bone distraction capability directly, eliminating the need for separate distraction instruments to be introduced through the access canal. This reduces the total number of instruments required while maintaining reliable bone distraction functionality.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The stent provides a cost-effective, single-use solution for minimally invasive surgeries, enabling both retraction and distraction functions without the need for additional instruments, thus expanding its application in orthopedic and accident surgeries.
Implementation Method 1
a radially flexibly enlargeable, tube-shaped wall structure which is divided up, seen in the circumferential direction, in at least two sections with flexibilities that differ from one another
Data Source
AI summary
A stent retractor/distractor includes a radially flexibly enlargeable, pipe-shaped sheath which is divided up in the circumferential direction in at least two sections, namely one stiffening section and one enlarging section with differing radial flexibilities, which are connected with each other in one piece of material. The stent retractor/distractor defined in that way is made on the whole by a laser or water jet cutting procedure, preferably from a pipe blank.