Methods of tissue repair. At least one example method includes: pulling a tissue in place over a bone location; abutting a distal end of a guide tool against the tissue at a first location, and driving a first bone anchor through a delivery tube of the guide tool, through the tissue, and into the bone at the first location, the first bone anchor coupled to a first suture line; abutting the distal end of the guide tool against the tissue at a second location displaced from the first location, and then driving a second bone anchor through the delivery tube, through the tissue, and into the bone at the second location, the second bone anchor associated with the first suture line; withdrawing the guide tool away from the tissue; and tightening the first suture line to create a first suture over the tissue.

Tissue compositions and methods of preparation thereof are provided. The tissue compositions can be used to treat or regenerate muscle tissue. The compositions can be configured to provide increased strength compared to other muscle matrices.

Tissue compositions and methods of preparation thereof are provided. The tissue compositions can be used to treat or regenerate muscle tissue. The compositions can be configured to provide increased strength compared to other muscle matrices.

Guide tools for installation of fixation devices. At least one example embodiment includes: a delivery tube, the delivery tube defines a slot that runs from the distal end to the proximal end; a guide tube coupled to the delivery tube; and a handle coupled to the proximal end of the delivery tube and coupled to the proximal end of the guide tube. The handle may include a first channel into an interior of the delivery tube through the slot, and a receptacle in operational relationship to the delivery tube and the first channel.

A torsional actuator formed of a yarn of twisted shape memory material. The yarn has multiple strands of homogeneous shape memory material that have been homochirally twisted. For torsional actuation, a fractional portion of the yarn is heated such as by Joule heating. Various Joule heating mechanisms include passing an electrical current through an unwound segment of the yarn, or by coating a fractional portion of the length of each homogeneous strand with a coating material of higher electrical conductivity than the electrical conductivity of the shape memory material an passing current through the length of the yarn. The shape memory material may be a shape memory alloy such as a NiTi alloy.

Methods of tissue repair. At least one example method includes: pulling a tissue in place over a bone location; abutting a distal end of a guide tool against the tissue at a first location, and driving a first bone anchor through a delivery tube of the guide tool, through the tissue, and into the bone at the first location, the first bone anchor coupled to a first suture line; abutting the distal end of the guide tool against the tissue at a second location displaced from the first location, and then driving a second bone anchor through the delivery tube, through the tissue, and into the bone at the second location, the second bone anchor associated with the first suture line; withdrawing the guide tool away from the tissue; and tightening the first suture line to create a first suture over the tissue.

A method and apparatus are disclosed for providing a compression fixation between a first and further component. The apparatus comprises an elongate body having a head end and a tip end and comprising a screw thread including a first region in which the screw thread has a corresponding first pitch and a further region, extending from the tip end, in which the screw thread is tapered and has a corresponding farther pitch that continually decreases away from the tip end.

The present invention relates to a soft actuator moving linearly against external stimuli whose expansion and contraction can be actively controlled, suggesting that the actuator of the invention overcomes the problems of the conventional soft actuators, The soft actuator of the present invention can be repetitively driven quickly and accurately by controlling heating and cooling by using thermoelectric effect and, the soft actuator of the present invention can realize bending, tensioning, compression, and rotational driving of a tubular device containing a driver.

The present invention is an anatomic system which uses the principle of applying higher elastic tonus than the rest tonus of the agonist muscles to provide the function of the antagonist muscles, and which is designed in a simplest way to provide the said purpose and which can be integrated to the body. The static mechanism of the invention is an elastic mechanism which applies a continuous stable tension in order to keep the joints open. The tension of the mechanism is calibrated by increasing or decreasing the amount of the liquid in a chamber which has flexible and elastic walls up to a certain via a port. In the dynamic mechanism of the invention, the tension applied by the elastic mechanism can be changed according to the motion the patient wants to perform.

Guide tools for installation of fixation devices. At least one example embodiment includes: a delivery tube, the delivery tube defines a slot that runs from the distal end to the proximal end; a guide tube coupled to the delivery tube; and a handle coupled to the proximal end of the delivery tube and coupled to the proximal end of the guide tube. The handle may include a first channel into an interior of the delivery tube through the slot, and a receptacle in operational relationship to the delivery tube and the first channel.