Tuning implants for increased performance

• US 8,521,492 B2
• Filed: 11/22/2011
• Issued: 08/27/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/19/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Smith & Nephew Incorporated (Smith & Nephew PLC)
• Original Assignee: Smith & Nephew Incorporated (Smith & Nephew PLC)
• Inventors: Otto, Jason K., McKinnon, Brian W., Nadzadi, Mark Ellsworth
• Primary Examiner(s): Craig, Dwin M
• Application Number:
  US13/302,256
• Publication Number:
  US 20120130687A1
• Time in Patent Office: 644 Days
• Field of Search: 703/6, 606/90
• US Class Current: 703/6
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2034/108 Computer aided selection or customisation of medical implants or cutting guides
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/10 Computer-aided planning, simulation or modelling of surgical operations
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/103 Detecting, measuring or recording devices for testing the shape, pattern, colour, size or movement of the body or parts thereof, for diagnostic purposes A61B5/08 takes precedence; measuring aids for tailors A41H1/00; measuring instruments specially adapted for dentistry A61C19/04
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4528 Joints A61B5/4533, A61B5/4538 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4533 Ligaments
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4824 Touch or pain perception evaluation A61B5/4821 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6878 Bone
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/38 for elbows or knees
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/30943 using mathematical models
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/30955 using finite-element analysis
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/3096 trimmed or cut to a customised size
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 50/00 Data acquisition or data processing for additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 80/00 Products made by additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: G16B 5/00 ICT specially adapted for modelling or simulations in systems biology, e.g. gene-regulatory networks, protein interaction networks or metabolic networks
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/40 relating to mechanical, radiation or invasive therapies, e.g. surgery, laser therapy, dialysis or acupuncture
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/20 for handling medical images, e.g. DICOM, HL7 or PACS
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/50 for simulation or modelling of medical disorders

Abstract

A method for preoperatively characterizing an individual patient'"'"'s biomechanic function in preparation of implanting a prosthesis is provided. The method includes subjecting a patient to various activities, recording relative positions of anatomy during said various activities, measuring force environments responsive to said patient'"'"'s anatomy and affected area during said various activities, characterizing the patient'"'"'s biomechanic function from said relative positions and corresponding force environments, inputting the measured force environments, relative positions of knee anatomy, and patient'"'"'s biomechanic function characterization into one or more computer simulation models, inputting a computer model of the prosthesis into said one or more computer simulation models, and manipulating the placement of the prosthesis in the computer simulation using said patient'"'"'s biomechanic function characterization and said computer model of the prosthesis to approximate a preferred biomechanical fit of the prosthesis.

Claims

1. A method of treating an articular joint of a particular patient, the method comprising:

(a) preparing the articular joint to receive a joint implant;

(b) installing at least one trial on the prepared articular joint, the trial comprising at least one sensor configured to communicate with a computing device;

(c) using the computing device, accessing data concerning a patient-specific predicted performance of the articular joint;

(i) wherein the predicted performance data is based on pre-operative patient data concerning a measurement of the patient'"'"'s joint during an activity of the joint, and based on data concerning the joint implant, including at least one of data concerning a planned articular geometry of the joint implant, data concerning a planned position of the joint implant relative to the patient'"'"'s joint, and data concerning a planned orientation of the joint implant relative to the patient'"'"'s joint; and

(ii) wherein the predicted performance comprises at least one of a predicted kinematic performance and a predicted kinetic performance, wherein the predicted kinetic performance comprises at least one of a predicted force magnitude and a predicted force direction during post-treatment movement of the patient'"'"'s joint, and wherein the predicted kinematic performance comprises at least one of a predicted translation and a predicted rotation during post-treatment movement of the patient'"'"'s joint;

(d) moving the patient'"'"'s joint while using the sensor and the computing device to collect data reflecting an actual performance of the patient'"'"'s joint comprising at least one of an actual kinematic performance and an actual kinetic performance, wherein the actual kinetic performance comprises at least one of a measured force magnitude and a measured force direction during movement of the patient'"'"'s joint, wherein the actual kinematic performance comprises at least one of a measured translation and a measured rotation during movement of the patient'"'"'s joint;

(e) comparing the data concerning the patient-specific predicted performance to the data concerning the actual performance of the patient'"'"'s joint; and

(f) based on the comparison, doing at least one of;

installing a second joint implant instead of the joint implant, further modifying the articular joint to change a planned position of the joint implant relative to the articular joint, and further modifying the articular joint to change a planned orientation of the joint implant relative to the articular joint.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the trial installed on the prepared articular joint includes at least one articular surface.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the trial installed on the prepared articular joint is a patellar implant trial.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the patellar implant trial installed on the prepared articular joint includes at least one of a sensor positioned to measure a side force on the patellar implant trial and a sensor positioned to measure a normal force at a trochlear groove contact of the patellar implant trial.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the trial installed on the prepared articular joint is a femoral implant trial.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the femoral implant trial installed on the prepared articular joint includes at least one of a sensor positioned to measure a medial condyle force on the femoral implant trial, a sensor positioned to measure a lateral condyle force on the femoral implant trial, a sensor positioned to measure a trochlear groove force on the femoral implant trial, a sensor positioned to measure an anterior cam force on the femoral implant trial, and a sensor positioned to measure a posterior cam force on the femoral implant trial.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the trial installed on the prepared articular joint is a tibial implant trial.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the tibial implant trial installed on the prepared articular joint includes at least one of a sensor positioned to measure a medial compressive force on the tibial implant trial, a sensor positioned to measure a lateral compressive force on the tibial implant trial, and a second positioned to measure a force on a post of the tibial implant trial.