Surgical Tissue Anchor with Non-Linear Track Deployment
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current surgical tools for inserting tissue anchors, particularly for reattaching soft tissues like ligaments and tendons to bone, lack efficient mechanisms for controlled deployment and secure fixation, leading to suboptimal anchoring and tissue stabilization.
Innovation Solution
A surgical tool featuring a shaft with a non-linear track and a deployment member that moves along this track to deploy anchors, combined with a mechanism for advancing a hole-forming element, enabling precise insertion and fixation of anchors in bone tissue using a suture system with a slip knot for secure tissue attachment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional surgical tools with linear tracks are used for anchor deployment, then the deployment mechanism is simple, but the precision and control of anchor placement is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a non-linear curved track instead of a straight linear track to guide the deployment member. This curved path allows the anchor to be deployed along an arc rather than a straight line, providing better control over the anchor's final position and orientation within the bone tunnel, thereby improving placement precision while maintaining reasonable device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from a one-dimensional linear track to a two-dimensional curved track, adding spatial complexity to the deployment path. This dimensional change enables more versatile anchor placement options and improved control over insertion depth and angle, resolving the contradiction between precision and simplicity
2Reliability
If pound-in type anchors are used, then the insertion is quick and simple, but the anchoring stability and grip strength are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates pre-formed barbs on the anchor that are designed to engage tissue upon deployment. These barbs are prepared in advance during manufacturing, so that when the anchor is inserted, they automatically provide mechanical interlocking with the bone tissue, enhancing anchoring stability without requiring additional surgical steps or complex insertion techniques
Solution Approach 2:
The anchor design combines different material properties and structural features - the shaft portion for insertion and the barb structures for secure engagement. This composite approach integrates both the simplicity of pound-in insertion and the reliability of threaded anchoring, achieving high holding strength through the combination of smooth insertion surface and interlocking barb elements
3Ease of operation
If screw-in type anchors with hexagonal interfaces are used, then the rotational control is precise, but the device complexity and time for insertion increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses pre-formed barbs that are prepared during manufacturing to provide automatic engagement with tissue upon deployment. This eliminates the need for rotational screwing actions during surgery, allowing the anchor to be inserted quickly in a single pounding motion while still achieving precise positioning through the curved track guidance, thus reducing insertion time while maintaining operational precision
Data Source
AI summary
A surgical tool includes a shaft for receiving implants. The shaft defines a non-linear track. The tool includes a deployment member movable along the track to deploy the implants. An implant includes a body, and a plurality of alternating threads and flutes helically arranged about the body such that the body rotates under a linear applied force. Alternatively, an implant includes a body having a distal end for pound-in advancement into tissue. The body includes a plurality of cone-shaped, stacked barbs. A surgical tool includes two implants. The first implant has forward threads and the second implant has reverse threads. The first implant has threads for rotary advancement into tissue and the second implant is configured for pound-in advancement into tissue. The first and second implants are configured for pound-in advancement into tissue.