The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 01, 2012
Filed:
Aug. 06, 2004
Scott Steffensmeier, Warsaw, IN (US);
Scott Steffensmeier, Warsaw, IN (US);
Zimmer Technology, Inc., Warsaw, IN (US);
Abstract
The present invention relates to one or more tibial spacer blocks used during knee arthroplasty, each configured to be temporarily positioned upon a resected proximal portion of a tibia (essentially mimicking the tibial component of the knee prosthesis), for performing a range of motion analysis and for checking flexion and extension gaps prior to cutting the distal or posterior femur. Preferably, the spacer blocks each include an attachment arrangement configured and arranged to mate with a complementary attachment arrangement of an alignment tower and/or a femoral cutting guide. The alignment tower, which is configured to be used with an alignment rod, is used for verifying the alignment of the limb's mechanical axis when the spacer block is positioned between the tibia and the femur. The femoral cutting guide is used for guiding a cutting member into proper orientation for resecting a distal or posterior portion of a femur.