Wedge-Shaped Bone Implant Self-Retention Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing foot bone implants require additional plates to retain wedge-shaped implants in position, which can cause irritation to adjacent anatomy and are not self-stable, necessitating a solution for internal fixation without external plates.
Innovation Solution
A wedge-shaped bone implant with angled bone screw bores and a recess for a plate or a cover to prevent screw backout, allowing for self-retention and stability without an external plate, and optionally featuring a graft window for bone fusion and visibility markers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a plate is placed over the joint to retain the wedge-shaped implant, then the implant is retained in position, but the plate causes irritation to adjacent anatomy and the patient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the plate component from the fixation system entirely. Instead of using a separate plate to retain the wedge-shaped implant, the implant itself is designed with self-retaining features including bone screw bores that extend through the implant body to allow direct bone screw fixation, eliminating the need for an additional plate and thus eliminating the source of irritation to adjacent anatomy
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the retention function into the wedge-shaped implant itself by integrating bone screw bores directly into the implant body. This merging of functions allows the implant to both provide structural support and retain itself through bone screws, eliminating the need for a separate plate component
2Reliability
If a plate is used to retain the wedge-shaped implant, then the implant is secured, but the device complexity increases due to multiple components
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the plate component from the fixation system, reducing the number of components from two (wedge implant plus plate) to one (wedge implant with integrated bone screw bores). This simplification maintains fixation reliability while eliminating unnecessary complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The wedge-shaped implant is designed to perform multiple functions: providing structural support, enabling bone fusion through the graft window, and self-retention through integrated bone screw bores. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate plate and screw components, reducing overall device complexity
Data Source
AI summary
A wedge-shaped bone implant, particularly but not necessarily, for fixing bones of the foot is provided. The implant has bone screw bores that are each configured to hold a bone screw at a particular angle for receipt in a foot bone, eliminating the need to also use a plate. The implant can include an opening that extends through the implant body from one tapered side thereof to the other tapered side thereof. This opening allows the introduction and retention of bone graft material to promote bone fusion. One or both tapered sides of the body may also have teeth, serrations or the like. The implant body may include a hole or the like in the distal aspect thereof. This allows for the insertion of a metallic component (e.g. titanium or tantalum) to allow for the visibility of the extent of the implant body in radiography, x-ray, or the like.