FORCE SENSING DISTAL FEMORAL ALIGNMENT SYSTEM AND METHOD OF USE
First Claim
1. A system for aligning the knee during a surgical procedure on the knee, the system comprising:
- a femoral assembly removably engagable with a distal femur, the femoral assembly including a stationary femoral portion, an adjustable medial femoral portion coupled to the stationary femoral portion, and an adjustable lateral femoral portion coupled to the stationary femoral portion;
a knee alignment verification member coupleable with the stationary femoral portion of the femoral assembly and providing visual confirmation of a femoral and tibial mechanical axes of the knee; and
a force sensor coupleable with the stationary femoral portion of the femoral assembly, the force sensor comprising a medial portion for sensing a first force in a medial portion of the knee and a lateral portion for sensing a second force in a lateral portion of the knee.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
Devices, systems, and methods are provided for facilitating the aligning and balancing of the knee during total knee replacement surgery. A femoral assembly is engaged with a distal femur. The positions of medial and lateral portions of the femoral assembly relative to a stationary portion of the femoral assembly can be separately adjusted to adjust the alignment of the knee. A force sensor will be provided to sense the forces in the medial and lateral portions of the knee, and the medial and lateral portions of the femoral assemblies will be adjusted so that the sensed forces are balanced. The alignment of the knee is visually verified using a knee alignment verification member coupled to the femoral assembly. The knee alignment verification member may emit laser beams along the mechanical axes of the femur and tibia, or the knee alignment verification member may couple to alignment rods aligned along these axes.
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Citations
30 Claims
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1. A system for aligning the knee during a surgical procedure on the knee, the system comprising:
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a femoral assembly removably engagable with a distal femur, the femoral assembly including a stationary femoral portion, an adjustable medial femoral portion coupled to the stationary femoral portion, and an adjustable lateral femoral portion coupled to the stationary femoral portion; a knee alignment verification member coupleable with the stationary femoral portion of the femoral assembly and providing visual confirmation of a femoral and tibial mechanical axes of the knee; and a force sensor coupleable with the stationary femoral portion of the femoral assembly, the force sensor comprising a medial portion for sensing a first force in a medial portion of the knee and a lateral portion for sensing a second force in a lateral portion of the knee. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method for aligning the knee during a surgical procedure on the knee, the method comprising:
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engaging a femoral assembly with a distal femur, the femoral assembly including a stationary femoral portion, an adjustable medial femoral portion coupled to the stationary femoral portion, and an adjustable lateral femoral portion coupled to the stationary femoral portion; coupling a force sensor with the stationary femoral portion of the femoral assembly; sensing a first force in a medial portion of the knee and a second force in the lateral portion of the knee using the coupled force sensor; separately adjusting the position of the adjustable medial femoral portion relative to the stationary femoral portion and the position of the adjustable lateral femoral portion relative to the stationary femoral portion based on the sensed first and second forces to align a femoral and tibial mechanical axes of the knee; and visually confirming the alignment of the femoral and tibial mechanical axes of the knee using a knee alignment verification assembly coupleable with the stationary femoral portion of the femoral assembly. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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27. A method for aligning a leg having a femur and a tibia during knee surgery, the femur having a mechanical axis, a distal end and a proximal end and the tibia having a mechanical axis, a distal end and a proximal end, the method comprising:
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engaging a femoral assembly with the provisionally cut distal end of the femur, the femoral assembly including a stationary femoral portion, an adjustable medial femoral portion having a medial pivot fulcrum coupled to the stationary femoral portion, and an adjustable lateral femoral portion having a lateral pivot fulcrum coupled to the stationary femoral portion; coupling a force sensor with the stationary femoral portion of the femoral assembly; reversibly coupling a medial posterior member to the medial side of the stationary femoral portion; reversibly coupling a lateral posterior member to the lateral side of the stationary femoral portion; abutting the medial member against the medial posterior femur; abutting the lateral member against the lateral posterior femur; sensing a first force in a medial portion of the knee and a second force in the lateral portion of the knee using the coupled force sensor; separately adjusting the position of the adjustable medial femoral portion relative to the stationary femoral portion and the position of the adjustable lateral femoral portion relative to the stationary femoral portion based on the sensed first and second forces to align the femoral and tibial mechanical axes of the knee; and visually confirming the alignment of the femoral and tibial mechanical axes of the knee using a knee alignment verification assembly coupleable with the stationary femoral portion of the femoral assembly. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30)
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Specification