Transfer element and container for a medical instrument or implant, particularly for a dental implant

#The present invention relates to a transfer element and a container for a medical instrument or implant, more particularly for a dental implant.

#Medical instruments or implants, more particularly dental implants, are often provided to the medical or dental practitioner in a sterile state. In order to ensure the sterile state during transport and storage, the packaging of the implant must have a sterile barrier, which is often formed by an outer packaging element. Moreover, the packaging of implants, more particularly of dental implants, has a further packaging element that protects the implant from mechanical influences, in particular abrasion. Containers are used as further packaging element and these moreover protect the implant from unnecessary contact with other materials, which could chemically contaminate or inactivate the surface of the implant.

#Implants are usually held with an auxiliary tool, which allows or should ease the insertion of the implant in the patient. Thus, for example, dental implants are often held by means of a (screw-in) adapter and screwed into the bone with the aid of a socket wrench. Suitable containers should therefore ensure that the implant is not contaminated chemically, biologically or by particles or excessively loaded by germs during the removal from the container and the insertion into the auxiliary tool.

#In detail:

#FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of a transfer element according to the present invention, with a dental implant;

#FIGS. 2A/B respectively show a perspective illustration and a plan view of a first embodiment of a container according to the invention, with the transfer element and the dental implant from FIG. 1, wherein the transfer element is in the inserted and locked state;

#FIG. 1 shows a perspective illustration of a first embodiment of a transfer element 1 according to the present invention. The transfer element 1 comprises a holder segment 5 at a first end 7 and an adapter segment 10 connected to the holder segment 5. The holder segment 5 has ribs 12, which serve as means for handling the transfer element 1. With the aid of the ribs 12, the transfer element 1 can be securely picked up and held by hand.

#The adapter segment 10 has a connection section 15 and an adapter end region 20, wherein the adapter end region 20 is arranged terminally at a second end 22 and the connection section 15 is arranged between the adapter end region 20 and the holder segment 5. A dental implant 25 has been mounted on the adapter end region 20 and it is illustrated by dashed lines in the figures. The adapter end region 20 is equipped with spring fingers 30, which have lugs 35. The lugs 35 form rest faces for the dental implant 25. The lugs 35 with the rest faces support and hold the dental implant 25 on the transfer element 1. FIG. 1 illustrates an integral dental implant 25 with a body part 40, behind which the lugs 35 of the adapter end region 20 engage and which is correspondingly held thereby. Hence only a small region of the dental implant 25 is in contact with the transfer element 1. The remaining regions of the dental implant 25, in particular the endosteal region, do not contact the transfer element and hence are freely accessible, for example for a sterilization means, which guarantees good sterilizability of the dental implant 25.

#In the embodiment of the transfer element 1 illustrated in FIG. 1, the connection section 15 thereof has a substantially circular cylindrical design and has an outer lateral face 45. Formed into the outer lateral face 45 is a groove 50, which is part of connection means of the transfer element 1 and is intended to interact with the connection means of a housing of a container and form a bayonet closure. The two ends 52 of the groove 50 lie diametrically opposed on a plane perpendicular to a longitudinal axis 55 of the transfer element 1. Starting from the two ends 52 of the groove 50, the groove 50 initially runs anticlockwise in the circumferential direction. Then the groove 50 respectively describes an arc of 90° and runs parallel to the longitudinal axis 55 of the transfer element 1 in the direction of the adapter end region 20. Continuing, the groove 50 once again respectively describes an arc of 90°, with the groove 50 starting from one end 52 of the groove 50 now running clockwise and the groove 50 starting from the other end 52 running anticlockwise, in the circumferential direction.