Bone plate

#The present invention relates generally to bone plates, and more specifically, to bone plates for the fixation of parts of a fractured bone, preferably long bones, including the femur and the tibia.

#A bone plate is a plate that is fastenable to the surface of a bone typically at both sides of a fracture to support and/or stabilize the fracture. Bone plates have typically been attached to the bone with bone screws that extend from the plate into the bone. In some examples, the head of the bone screw is locked to the plate (e.g., by threaded engagement between the screw head and the bone plate) and in other plates the head of the screw is free to angulate with respect to the plate, such that the screw may be placed in the bone at a surgeon-selected angle. In yet other examples, the screw head may cooperate with the bone plate to provide compression or distraction of the fracture (i.e., to push the bone fragments towards or away from one another).

#When treating certain types of fractures, such as that of the proximal portion of the femur, there may be high stresses at the bone-screw and/or screw-plate interfaces. Several different types of bone plates have been developed to accommodate these high stresses. In one example known as a “blade plate,” the bone plate may have a blade-shaped portion that extends approximately perpendicularly to the plate, and extends into a channel formed in the bone through the fracture site. In another example, a lag screw may extend from a barrel portion of the plate and through the fracture site. With both of these systems, however, a large amount of bone must be removed to accommodate the blade or barrel. In addition, the surgical procedures are technically difficult, as the bone must be removed with precision in order to allow proper positioning of the bone plate on the bone.

#To facilitate an understanding of the characteristics, structure and operation of the invention, preferred exemplary features of the invention are described in the accompanying discussion, it being understood that the invention in its various embodiments is not limited to the preferred examples illustrated and, wherein similar reference characters denote similar elements throughout the several views or embodiments, and wherein:

#FIG. 1 is a side view of a first illustrative embodiment of a bone plate according to the present invention, shown attached to a proximal portion of a fractured femur by a plurality of bone screws;

#FIG. 2 is a top view of a portion of the bone plate of FIG. 1;

#For convenience, the same or equivalent elements in various embodiments of the bone plate illustrated in the drawings have been identified with the same reference numerals. Further, in the description that follows, any reference to either orientation or direction is intended primarily for the convenience of description and is not intended in any way to limit the scope of the present invention thereto.

#A first illustrative embodiment of a bone plate 10 is shown in FIG. 1. The bone plate 10 shown in FIG. 1 is dimensioned and configured for internal fixation of the proximal portion of a fractured femur F. One of ordinary skill in the art will know and appreciate, however, that the principles of the present invention may be applied to bone plates for fixation of other bones of humans and/or animals, for example long bones, and for different parts of long bones (e.g., the proximal tibia, the distal femur, etc.).

#As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, bone plate 10 has a longitudinal axis 15, and includes an upper surface 20 and a lower surface 22. Bone plate 10 may be constructed from biocompatible materials such as, for example, titanium, alloys of titanium, stainless steel, resorbable materials, and allograft, although one of ordinary skill in the art will know and appreciate that any biocompatible material may be used. As will be discussed in greater detail below and shown generally in FIGS. 1 and 3, bone plate 10 is configured to receive a plurality of bone anchors 110, 115, 120, 125. Bone anchors 110, 115, 120 and 125 are shown in FIG. 1 as bone screws, however other types of bone anchors known to one of ordinary skill in the art, such as blades, nails, pins, etc, may be used. The engagement of the bone plate 10 and screws 110, 115 may result in a truss formation 128 for effectively anchoring bone plate 10 to the proximal portion of a fractured femur, or other bone. Lower surface 22 may contact the bone F directly, as shown, or alternatively, may be held at a distance from the bone surface to facilitate increased flow of blood over the fracture zone.