Biocompatible absorbable polymer fastener and driver for use in surgical procedures
AssigneeEthicon, Inc.
InventorsShawn T. Huxel, David W. Overaker
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A biocompatible fastener that may be used for attachment of a fixation plate to bone is described herein, where the fastener has features that facilitate its deployment in a surgical environment. The fastener is composed of a screw, having a threaded shaft and slotted head, and a detachable body that is used for deploying the screw and is then broken away and discarded. The slot in the head of the screw has stress concentrating notch features that direct the fracture lines into the screw head upon detachment of the secondary body, thus ensuring that the screw head surface remains smooth after deployment. A suitable driver for applying the fastener is also described.
Claims10
A surgical fastener made of a bioabsorbable polymer comprising
- a screw having an externally threaded shaft with a proximal end;
- a screw head attached to the proximal end of the screw shaft, the screw head having an upper surface which has a slot;
- and
- a detachable body extending from the upper surface of the screw head, the detachable body being detachably linked to the screw head;
- wherein present in the slot is at least one stress concentration notch to facilitate the separation of the detachable body from the upper surface of the screw head.
A fastener and driver combination comprising:
- a fastener made of bioabsorbable material comprising a screw having an externally threaded shaft with a proximal end and a screw head attached to the proximal end of the screw shaft, the screw head having an upper surface which has a slot, extending from the upper surface of the screw head is a detachable body, the detachable body being detachably linked to the screw head at a junction and having an external surface;
- and
- a driver having a handle with a proximal and distal end, the distal end of the handle being attached to a receiver having an internal passage that has a suitable size and shape to engage the external surface of the detachable body of the fastener and a means for releasing the detachable body of the fastener;
- wherein the means for releasing the detachable body is a plunger that ejects the detachable body from the receiver.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.