Depuy Synthes Products, Inc.

Johanna F Menze

This Aebi

Mirko Rocci

Joel Oberli

Said Ghammar

Steffan Daniel

Andreas Baeriswyl

Martin Altmann

André Weber

A method for treating an articular fracture of a tibia using a tibia plate with an extension arm, including: making an incision to expose the tibia; reducing the articular fracture of the tibia; contouring the tibia plate to fit the tibia; preliminarily fixing the tibia plate to the tibia; placing a screw partially into the tibia through a lateral elongated hole in the tibia plate; applying compression between a plate screw hole in the extension arm and an anterior surface of the tibia; and placing additional plate screws in the tibia through additional screw holes in the tibia plate.

Lateral proximal tibia plate with extension arm

A bone plate includes a plate body defining an outer surface, an opposed bone-facing surface, and a combination hole comprising a locking hole and a compression hole that intersect one another and each extending from the outer surface to the bone-facing surface. The locking hole and the compression hole extend away from each other along a longitudinal axis. The plate body further defines a locking surface that defines the locking hole, and a second surface that defines the compression hole. The locking surface further defines a plurality of columns sequentially located about a central axis of the locking hole, a plurality of recesses located, respectively, between at least some of the columns, and plate threads that traverse each of the columns. Crests of the plate threads extend linearly from a first side of each column to a second side of each column.

Deformable threaded locking structures, and related systems and methods

A drill sleeve, including: an outer sleeve with an internal collet at a distal end of the outer sleeve, a slot, and an inner opening; a handle connected to the outer sleeve; an inner sleeve with an inner opening configured to receive and guide a drill bit, wherein the inner sleeve is configured to slide inside the inner opening of the outer sleeve; a trigger; a connection member connected to trigger and the inner tube, wherein the connection member passes through the slot in the outer sleeve and a biasing member configured to apply a biasing force between the handle and the trigger wherein the biasing force drives the inner sleeve into the outer sleeve, wherein when a distal end of the inner sleeve engages the internal collet, the internal collet is configured to engage a screw hole in a bone plate, align the drill sleeve with a nominal axis of the screw hole, and secure the drill sleeve to the screw hole.

Self-orienting drill sleeve

A drill guide, including: frustoconical body with a first opening at a narrower distal end and second opening at a wider the proximal end; a first support with a first end connected to the frustoconical body and a second end; a zero angle guide with an opening aligned with the first opening and wherein the zero angle guide is connected to the second end of the first support.

Drill guide with integrated variable angle and zero degree drilling

A drill sleeve, including: an outer sleeve with an internal collet at a distal end of the outer sleeve and an inner opening; a handle connected to the outer sleeve; an inner sleeve with an inner opening configured to receive and guide a drill bit, wherein the inner sleeve is configured to slide inside the inner opening of the outer sleeve; a trigger connected to the inner sleeve; and a biasing member configured to apply a biasing force between the handle and the trigger wherein the biasing force drives the inner sleeve into the outer sleeve, wherein when a distal end of the inner sleeve engages the internal collet, the internal collet is configured to engage a screw hole in a bone plate, align the drill sleeve with a nominal axis of the screw hole, and secure the drill sleeve to the screw hole.

A variable angle bone screw includes a first portion and a second portion that is separate from the first portion and configured to be attached to the first portion. The first portion defines at least a portion up to an entirety of the threaded head of the variable angle bone screw. The second portion defines at least a portion up to an entirety of the threaded shaft of the variable angle bone screw. The threaded head can have a first material hardness, and the threaded shaft can have a second material hardness that is less than the first material hardness.

Variable angle bone screw having a hardened head

A bone fixation system includes a plate body that defines an interior surface that defines at least one hole defining a central axis. The internal surface defines plate threads within the hole. The system includes a bone screw having a shaft extending from head along a central axis, wherein the head has an exterior surface that defines threads that are configured to threadedly engage the plate threads. The plate threads and head threads each have a cross-sectional profile in a respective reference plane extending along the respective central axis. The cross-sectional profiles each comprise roots, crests, and flanks extending therebetween. The roots, crests, and flanks collectively deviate from a reference cross-sectional profile that is V-shaped in the respective reference plane and defines crest reference points at apices at a first side thereof and root reference points at apices at a second side thereof opposite the first side. Such deviation causes a thread height measured from the crests to the roots to be less than a reference height measured from the crest reference points to the root reference points, such that a ratio of the thread height of the head threads to the reference height of the head threads is from 0.50:1 to 0.80:1, and a ratio of the thread height of the plate threads to the reference height of the plate threads is from 0.50:1 to 1.00:1.

Growing community of inventors

Zurich, Switzerland

Johanna F Menze