Method and apparatus for soft tissue fixation

• US 8,109,965 B2
• Filed: 09/29/2006
• Issued: 02/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/09/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Biomet Manufacturing, LLC (Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Biomet Sports Medicine LLC (Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Stone, Kevin T, Kaiser, Ryan A, Sautter, Nathan
• Primary Examiner(s): SEVERSON, RYAN J
• Application Number:
  US11/541,504
• Publication Number:
  US 20070049944A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,957 Days
• Field of Search: 606/151, 606/219, 606/232
• US Class Current: 606/232
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/0401 Suture anchors, buttons or pledgets, i.e. means for attaching sutures to bone, cartilage or soft tissue; Instruments for applying or removing suture anchors A61B17/0642 takes precedence; fixation devices for tendons or ligaments A61F2/0811
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0409 Instruments for applying suture anchors for applying suture clamps, clips or locks A61B2017/0488
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0414 having a suture-receiving opening, e.g. lateral opening lateral eyelet for attaching suture to needle A61B2017/06019
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0435 the barbs being separate elements mechanically linked to the anchor, e.g. by pivots
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0445 cannulated, e.g. with a longitudinal through-hole for passage of an instrument
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0458 Longitudinal through hole, e.g. suture blocked by a distal suture knot
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0459 Multiple holes in the anchor through which the suture extends and locking the suture when tension is applied
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0496 for tensioning sutures
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/0811 Fixation devices for tendons or ligaments
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/0829 without deformation of anchor parts, e.g. fixation screws on bone surface, extending barbs, cams, butterflies, spring-loaded pins
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/0852 Fixation of a loop or U-turn, e.g. eyelets, anchor having multiple holes
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/0882 Anchor in or on top of a bone tunnel, i.e. a hole running through the entire bone

Abstract

A positioning member may be released to move an anchor member to a holding position. The positioning member being operable to be held in a selected orientation until the anchor member is in a selected position.

Claims

1. An anchor assembly for anchoring a graft to an anatomy, comprising:

an anchor body member having a cross-member and a main body operable to be positioned in the anatomy, the anchor body member defining a through bore having first and second generally cylindrical sections, the through bore first section having a first interior cross-sectional area, and the second section having a second interior cross-sectional area greater than the first interior cross-sectional area;

a collar wholly disposed within the second section, said collar defining a first collar through bore and a second collar through bore that extends substantially parallel to the first collar through bore;

a surface extending from the anchor body operable to engage the anatomy and to resist movement of the anchor body into the anatomy;

a selectable graft engagement member disposed through the collar through bore; and

an activation member operably connected with the selectable graft engagement member to select a size of the graft engagement member.

2. The anchor assembly of claim 1, wherein at least one of the selectable graft engagement member, the activation member, or combinations thereof are a flexible member.

3. The anchor assembly of claim 2, wherein the graft engagement member and the activation member are both flexible members.

4. The anchor assembly of claim 3, wherein the graft engagement member and the activation member are a same flexible member.

5. The anchor assembly of claim 3, wherein the graft engaging member and the activation member are interconnected through a passage defined in the anchor body member.

6. The anchor assembly of claim 1, wherein the collar is disk-shaped.

7. The anchor assembly of claim 6, wherein said cross member is substantially straight, curved, polygonal, or combinations thereof.

8. The anchor assembly of claim 1, wherein the activation member is interconnected with the graft engagement member through a selectable engagement system.

9. The anchor assembly according to claim 1, wherein the cross member defines a pair of concave anatomy engagement surfaces.

10. The anchor assembly according to claim 1, wherein the collar defines a pair of flexible graft engagement members.

11. An anchor assembly to anchor a graft in an anatomy comprising:

an anchor body having a cross-member and a cylindrical portion, the anchor body defining a generally cylindrical passage through the cross-member and cylindrical portion, the passage having an internal shoulder defined in the cylindrical portion; and

a collar disposed within the passage, said collar defining a first collar through bore and a second collar through bore, each of which have a diameter less than a diameter of the passage in the cross-member;

a flexible member extending through the passage defined by the anchor body and through both the first collar through bore and the second collar through bore;

wherein the flexible member defines a graft engaging portion and a selection portion, the graft engaging portion includes a graft engaging loop with a first end extending from the first collar through bore and a second end extending from the second collar through bore;

wherein the selection portion extends a distance to be moved by a user to select a size of the graft engaging portion.

12. The anchor assembly of claim 11, further comprising:

a cross member operable to engage the anatomy to resist movement of the anchor body into the anatomy.

13. The anchor assembly of claim 11, wherein the selection portion includes a selection loop having a first end extending from the first collar through bore and a second end extending from the second collar through bore;

and

wherein the graft engaging loop is integral with the selection loop such that the flexible member defines a single continuous loop.

14. The anchor assembly of claim 11, further comprising:

a selection system operably interconnected with the flexible member to allow the selection portion to select a size of the graft engaging portion.

15. The anchor assembly of claim 11, wherein the anchor body includes a dimension operable to move through a bore formed in the anatomy.

16. The anchor assembly of claim 11, further comprising:

an orientation selection mechanism operable to move the anchor body from a first orientation to a second orientation relative to the anatomy.

17. The anchor assembly of claim 16, wherein the anchor body is operable to move through a bore formed in the anatomy in a first orientation and move to a second orientation when positioned exterior to the bore;

wherein a holding member is operable to engage the anatomy in the second orientation to hold the anchor body in a selected orientation relative to the anatomy.

18. The anchor assembly according to claim 11, wherein the passage has first and second sections, said first section having a first cross-sectional area, and said second section has a second section having a second cross-sectional area larger than the first cross-sectional area, and wherein the collar is disposed in the second section.

19. An anchor assembly for anchoring a graft to an anatomy, said anchor assembly comprising:

an anchor body having a cross-member with a bone engaging surface, said anchor body further having a generally cylindrical body, said cylindrical body defining a body through bore, said through bore having a first generally cylindrical portion having a first internal cross-sectional area and a second generally cylindrical portion having a second internal cross-sectional area greater than the first internal cross-sectional area;

a collar wholly disposed within the second section, said collar defining a first collar through bore;

a flexible graft engagement member, said selectable graft engagement member being disposed through the body through bore and the first collar through bore;

a guide bore defined by the cross-member, the guide bore extends transverse to the body through bore; and

a guiding member extending through the guide bore.

20. The anchor assembly according to claim 19, wherein the collar defines a second collar through bore, and wherein the selectable flexible graft engagement member is disposed through the second collar through bore.

21. The anchor assembly according to claim 19, wherein the body comprises a cross member defining a pair of concave engagement surfaces configured to engage the anatomy.

22. The anchor assembly according to claim 19, further comprising an activation member connected to the selectable flexible graft engagement member to select the size of the selectable flexible graft engagement member.