Bone plate supported by a leg member and used as a lever

• US 9,707,022 B2
• Filed: 08/15/2016
• Issued: 07/18/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/27/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Acumed Llc (Berkshire Hathaway Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Acumed Llc (Berkshire Hathaway Incorporated)
• Inventors: Federspiel, Joshua P., Connors, Carol-Lynn E., Huebner, Randall J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ramana, Anu
• Application Number:
  US15/237,449
• Publication Number:
  US 20160346020A1
• Time in Patent Office: 337 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/1782 for the hand or wrist
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/8014 the extension or compression force being caused by interaction of the plate hole and the screws
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/8052 immobilised relative to screws by interlocking form of the heads and plate holes, e.g. conical or threaded
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/8061 specially adapted for particular bones A61B17/70 and A61B17/74 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/808 Instruments for holding or positioning bone plates, or for adjusting screw-to-plate locking mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/8085 with pliable or malleable elements or having a mesh-like structure, e.g. small strips A61B17/8071, A61B17/8076 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/8866 for gripping or pushing bones, e.g. approximators joint distractors A61B17/025
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/061 for measuring dimensions, e.g. length
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/067 for measuring angles
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/12 Arrangements for detecting or locating foreign bodies
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/487 involving fluoroscopy

Abstract

System, including apparatus and methods, for fixing bone with a bone plate supported temporarily at a slant on bone by a leg member before the bone plate is used as a lever to reposition a region of the bone. In some embodiments, the leg member may be a post member that attaches to the bone plate by threaded engagement with an aperture of the bone plate. In some embodiments, the bone plate and the leg member may be used near the end of a long bone, such as on a distal portion of a radial bone.

Claims

1. A system for bone fixation, comprising:

a monolithic bone plate including an arm portion and an anchor portion separated from one another by a fulcrum portion, the anchor portion being wider than the arm portion, each of the arm portion and the anchor portion defining one or more apertures for receiving fasteners that attach the bone plate to bone; and

a thumbscrew including a graspable handle portion affixed to an elongated shaft portion, the shaft portion having an external thread and also having a distal end configured to contact bone, the shaft portion being configured to be disposed in threaded engagement with an aperture of the arm portion via the external thread, such that the handle portion is located above an outer surface of the arm portion, and such that a leading region of the shaft portion projects from an inner surface of the arm portion, to enable support of the arm portion at a slant above a bone surface by the thumbscrew and the fulcrum portion of the bone plate,

wherein the thumbscrew is marked to identify an angle of slant at which the thumbscrew supports the arm portion.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the graspable handle portion is cylindrical.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the graspable handle portion includes a knurled surface region.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the graspable handle portion is elongated in a direction parallel to the long axis of the thumbscrew.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the thumbscrew is a first thumbscrew, the system further comprising a second thumbscrew, wherein the first and second thumbscrews have shaft portions of different length from one another.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein each of the first and second thumbscrews is marked to identify an angle of slant at which the thumbscrew supports the arm portion.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the anchor portion has an inner surface that is contoured to match a surface region near an end of a bone, such that the anchor portion fits onto the surface region.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the anchor portion has an inner surface that is contoured to match a surface region near a distal end of a radial bone.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the bone plate has a bend that renders an outer surface of the bone plate at least substantially concave in profile.