Ligament anchor system
First Claim
1. A ligament anchor system comprising, a pair of longitudinally open externally threaded footings;
- means for turning each said threaded footings into a tapped bone cortex;
a pair of stud means, each stud means including a flared end, a body that has a diameter to fit through the longitudinal passage of said threaded footing, and means for maintaining a ligament means thereto, said stud means flared end terminating in a lip wherefrom a lock wall extends to intersect said stud means body, said lip diameter being slightly greater than said threaded footing longitudinal opening wall diameter, which said stud means flared end is cut longitudinally into said stud means body to receive and maintain a ligament means fitted therealong to allow for collapse of said flared end reducing said lip diameter to less than said threaded footing longitudinal opening wall diameter; and
ligament means for arrangement between said pair of stud means.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An anchor system that is preferably for use in an arthoscopic cruciate ligament replacement procedure for securing a ligament (37) or (50), or ligament type device, with or without a stint (38), within a prepared ligament tunnel (33). The system includes a pair of threaded footings (11) for turning in opposite tapped ligament tunnel cortex ends (34) and (35) and studs (10), each having an eyelet end (18) or, for a prosthetic ligament (50) is secured to the ligament end, the studs each having a cylindrical body (17) and flared end (12). The stud flared end terminates in a lip (15) wherefrom a lock wall (16) extends at an angle to the vertical to the cylindrical body, which flared end is cross-cut at (19) and (20), forming sections. The stud flared end (12) sections to close together to fit through the threaded footing (11) and flex outwardly beyond that footing end (24), the lip lock wall (16) to flex over that footing end locking the stud therein.
In practice, the ligament (37) with or without the stint (38) is formed into a loop for sliding along the stud (10), slot (20) into the eyelet (18), or the studs are attached to a prosthetic ligament ends in its manufacture, the pair of studs and connected ligament and stint for manipulation through an arthoscopic port (36) formed into the patient'"'"'s knee, each stud for seating into a threaded footing, the studs each locking therein with the ligament stretched across the knee intra articular joint. Whereafter, tension on the ligament can be adjusted by individually turning the threaded footings appropriately into or out of the cortex threads.
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Citations
23 Claims
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1. A ligament anchor system comprising, a pair of longitudinally open externally threaded footings;
- means for turning each said threaded footings into a tapped bone cortex;
a pair of stud means, each stud means including a flared end, a body that has a diameter to fit through the longitudinal passage of said threaded footing, and means for maintaining a ligament means thereto, said stud means flared end terminating in a lip wherefrom a lock wall extends to intersect said stud means body, said lip diameter being slightly greater than said threaded footing longitudinal opening wall diameter, which said stud means flared end is cut longitudinally into said stud means body to receive and maintain a ligament means fitted therealong to allow for collapse of said flared end reducing said lip diameter to less than said threaded footing longitudinal opening wall diameter; and
ligament means for arrangement between said pair of stud means. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
- means for turning each said threaded footings into a tapped bone cortex;
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17. A process for installing a cruciate ligament in a knee arthoscopic surgical procedure where a tunnel has been formed between femoral and tibial cortexes through the intra articular joint and ligament origins, and the femoral and tibial cortexes have been tapped, comprising the steps of, turning each of a pair of threaded footings into the femoral and tibial tapped cortexes, said threaded footings each having a longitudinal passage therethrough;
- mounting ligament means to ends of each of a pair of stud means, said stud means, each having a body that will fit longitudinally through one of the threaded footings, with said ligament means ends attached to ends of each of said stud means cylindrical body, each of which stud means includes, on its other end, an outwardly flared end section that terminates in a lip, which lip has a diameter that is greater than that of said threaded footing longitudinal passage, and which stud means flared end is cross-cut longitudinally into its cylindrical body; and
installing each of said pair of stud means flared ends into said threaded footings, each stud means flared end collapsing along said cross-cuts to fit within and pass along said threaded footing longitudinal passage until said stud means flared end lip emerges from and said flared end lip flexes over a threaded footing end thereby locking said stud means in said threaded footing, the ligament means extending therebetween across the intra articular joint. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
- mounting ligament means to ends of each of a pair of stud means, said stud means, each having a body that will fit longitudinally through one of the threaded footings, with said ligament means ends attached to ends of each of said stud means cylindrical body, each of which stud means includes, on its other end, an outwardly flared end section that terminates in a lip, which lip has a diameter that is greater than that of said threaded footing longitudinal passage, and which stud means flared end is cross-cut longitudinally into its cylindrical body; and
Specification