ORTHOPAEDIC FRICTION PLATE

Abstract

Disclosed are devices, systems and related surgical methods for improving the fixation and/or durability of bone implants and/or components thereof for fracture fixation and/or other orthopedic procedures.

Claims

1. A surgical plate capable of fixation across a bone fracture using a plurality of bone screws, comprising: an elongated plate body having a first bone facing side and an opposing second side, a plurality of screw openings formed through the elongated plate body from the first bone facing side to the opposing second side, a portion of the first bone facing side proximate to at least one of the plurality of openings including a first textured surface.

2. The surgical plate of claim 1, wherein the first textured surface comprises a plurality of projections extending outward from the elongated plate body.

3. The surgical plate of claim 2, wherein the plurality of projections increases the static coefficient of friction of the first textured surface by at least 5% as compared to a smooth surface of a similar size.

4. The surgical plate of claim 2, wherein the plurality of projections increases the static coefficient of friction of the first textured surface by at least 25% as compared to a smooth surface of a similar size.

5. The surgical plate of claim 2, wherein the plurality of projections increases the static coefficient of friction of the first textured surface by at least 35% as compared to a smooth surface of a similar size.

6. The surgical plate of claim 2, wherein each of the plurality of projections comprise a pyramid shape.

7. The surgical plate of claim 2, wherein each of the plurality of projections comprise a ridged shape.

8. The surgical plate of claim 2, wherein each of the plurality of projections comprise a treadplate.

9. The surgical plate of claim 2, wherein the plurality of projections are distributed uniformly across the first textured surface.

10. The surgical plate of claim 2, wherein the plurality of projections are distributed symmetrically across the first textured surface.

11. The surgical plate of claim 2, wherein the plurality of projections are non-uniformly distributed across the first textured surface.

12. The surgical plate of claim 2, wherein the plurality of projections are non-uniformly distributed across the first textured surface.

13. The surgical plate of claim 1, wherein the portion of the first bone facing side includes a second textured surface proximate to a second of the plurality of openings, the second texture surface having a different bone facing surface configuration than the first textured surface.

14. The surgical plate of claim 2, wherein the plurality of projections are formed on the elongated plate using 3-D printing techniques.

15. The surgical plate of claim 2, wherein the plurality of projections are formed on the elongated plate by subtractive machining techniques.

16. A method of improving a coefficient of friction between a bone facing surface of a surgical plate and a bone against which the plate is implanted, the method comprising the steps of: altering a surface finish on the bone facing surface by forming a plurality of projections extending outward of the bone facing surface, the plurality of projection increasing the effective coefficient of static friction of the bone facing surface with the bone by at least 10%; securing the surgical plate against the bone using a plurality of fixation devices.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the plurality of fixation devices comprises a plurality of bone screws, each of the plurality of bone screws penetrating a surface of the bone.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein each of the plurality of bone screws extends through one of a plurality of openings extending through the surgical plate, the plurality of projections formed on the bone facing surface at a location proximate to at least one of the plurality of openings extending through the surgical plate.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of altering a surface finish on the bone facing surface comprises altering the surface finish on the bone facing surface by adding material to the bone facing surface without significantly altering the overall dimensions or rigidity of the surgical plate.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of altering a surface finish on the bone facing surface comprises altering the surface finish on the bone facing surface by removing material from the bone facing surface without significantly altering the overall dimensions or rigidity of the surgical plate.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] The foregoing and other features and advantages of the present subject matter will become apparent to those skilled in the art to which the present subject matter relates upon reading the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0017] FIGS. 1A through 1F depict various views of one exemplary embodiment of a bone plate for splinting a fracture on a bone;

[0018] FIG. 2A depicts an alternative embodiment of a bone plate for splinting a fracture on a bone;

[0019] FIG. 2B depicts an enlarged bone contacting surface of another exemplary embodiment of a bone plate;

[0020] FIG. 3 depicts an enlarged bone contacting surface of another exemplary embodiment of a bone plate;

[0021] FIG. 4 depicts an orthopedic plate secured to a long bone by a plurality of bone screws;

[0022] FIGS. 5A and 5B depict an exemplary securement of a bone plate to a bone surface;

[0023] FIG. 5C depicts an alternative securement of a bone plate where the bone surface presents a rough or irregular surface;

[0024] FIG. 6 depicts an exemplary series of plate and screw movements relative to a bone plate that can result in screw toggle and eventual screw “pullout” from the plate due to motion at the plate/bone interface;

[0025] FIGS. 7A and 7B depict various forces acting on a screw/plate interface;

[0026] FIG. 8 graphically depicts the linear relationship between the Force of static friction and both the Coefficient of static friction and the Normal force;

[0027] FIGS. 9A and 9B depict an exemplary static bone plate;

[0028] FIG. 10A depicts a smooth bone plate manufactured using 3D printing;

[0029] FIG. 10B depicts a textured bone plate manufactured using 3D printing

[0030] FIG. 11 graphically depicts a motion resistance of both the textured plate and smooth plate on a similar bone surface analog;

[0031] FIG. 12A depicts another exemplary embodiment of textured plates, with two plates secured to a test fixture;

[0032] FIG. 12B graphically depicts the results of the dynamic testing model of FIG. 12A;

[0033] FIG. 13 depicts one exemplary embodiment of a bone plate test fixture having a LC-DCP screw hole;

[0034] FIGS. 14A and 14B depict characteristics of various different surface texture embodiments which were developed, constructed and tested against equivalent sized smooth plates to determine values for a coefficient of friction;

[0035] FIG. 15A depicts another exemplary experiment comparing plates with the addition of bone facing textured surfaces against smooth surfaced plates;

[0036] FIG. 15B graphically depicts various results from the experiment of FIG. 15A;

[0037] FIGS. 15C and 15D depict various increases of the coefficient of friction and increased force of friction for textured plates; and

[0038] FIGS. 15E and 15F graphically depict various results from the experiment of FIG. 15A;

[0039] The following description and the annexed drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative aspects of the subject matter. These aspects are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of the subject matter may be employed and the present subject matter is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. Other objects, advantages and novel features of the subject matter will become apparent from the following detailed description of the subject matter when considered in conjunction with the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0040] The disclosure and the various features and advantageous details thereof are explained more fully with reference to the non-limiting embodiments and examples that are described and/or illustrated in the accompanying drawings and detailed in the following description. It should be noted that the features illustrated in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, and features of one embodiment may be employed with other embodiments as the skilled artisan would recognize, even if not explicitly stated herein. Descriptions of well-known components and processing techniques may be omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure the embodiments of the disclosure. The examples used herein are intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which the disclosure may be practiced and to further enable those of skill in the art to practice the embodiments of the disclosure. Accordingly, the examples and embodiments herein should not be construed as limiting the scope of the disclosure. Moreover, it is noted that like reference numerals represent similar parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

[0041] The terms “including,” “comprising” and variations thereof, as used in this disclosure, mean “including, but not limited to,” unless expressly specified otherwise. The terms “a,” “an,” and “the,” as used in this disclosure, mean “one or more,” unless expressly specified otherwise.

[0042] Devices and/or device components that are disclosed in communication with each other need not necessarily be in continuous communication with each other, unless expressly specified otherwise. In addition, devices that are in direct contact with each other may contact each other directly or indirectly through one or more intermediary articles or devices.

[0043] Although process steps, method steps, or the like, may be described in a sequential order, such processes and methods may be configured in alternate orders. In other words, any sequence or order of steps that may be described does not necessarily indicate a requirement that the steps be performed in that order. The steps of the processes or methods described herein may be performed in any order practical. Further, some steps may be performed simultaneously.

[0044] When a single device or article is described herein, it will be readily apparent that more than one device or article may be used in place of a single device or article. Similarly, where more than one device or article is described herein, it will be readily apparent that a single device or article may be used in place of the more than one device or article. The functionality or the features of a device or article may be alternatively embodied by one or more other devices or articles which are not explicitly described as having such functionality or features.

[0045] Certain exemplary embodiments will now be described to provide an overall understanding of the principles of the structure, function, manufacture, and use of the devices and methods disclosed herein. One or more examples of these embodiments are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the devices and methods specifically described herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawings are non-limiting exemplary embodiments and that the scope of the present invention is defined solely by the claims. The features illustrated or described in connection with one exemplary embodiment may be combined with the features of other embodiments. Such modifications and variations are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention.

[0046] The present invention provides various devices, systems and methods for treating various anatomical structures of long bones and/or other areas of human and/or animal bodies. While the disclosed embodiments may be particularly well suited for use during surgical procedures for the repair, fixation and/or support of long bones, it should be understood that various other anatomical locations of the body may benefit from various features of the present invention.

[0047] In various disclosed embodiments, a primary objective of the disclosed invention can be to increase the resistance of a bone plate to various types of sliding motion relative to the bone surface, for both conventional, non-locked plates as well as locked plates, which will desirably create more stable fixation constructs and prevent unwanted motion in a targeted anatomical region. In various embodiments, this will desirably preserve an anatomic reduction and/or preserving the blood supply of the treated region, while providing for an early and safe mobilization of the affected anatomy.

[0048] In fracture fixation, creating a stable construct is generally desirable to allow the broken bones and/or bone fragments to reattach and/or heal. In some scenarios, if there is excessive motion between the elements of the fixation construct and/or the treated anatomy, the bones will not heal and/or the construct fails. In many examples, fracture fixation with construct failure can occur where the screws and/or plates have lost “purchase,” and in some cases, the hardware itself has broken. Such failures can include screw toggle; screw backout; fatigue, strain and/or work hardening of various components, plate bending and/or fracture, various combinations thereof and/or a variety of other failure modes.

[0049] In some instances, commercially available fixation plates and/or related components might benefit from modification in light of the inventions disclosed herein, and the modification of such plates to incorporate the concepts of the present intention are contemplates herein. Such modifications may include a variety of steps, which can include the addition and/or removal of material to create a plurality of projections, including roughened and/or textured features, to the bone facing surface proximate to one or more fixation devices or securement locations on the plate. Desirably, the addition and/or removal of such material to form such features will not affect the overall dimensions of the fixation plate and/or the plate rigidity to a significant degree, yet these features can dramatically improve the fatigue performance and/or overall durability of the plate and related fixation elements post surgery.

[0050] FIGS. 1A through 1F depict various views of one exemplary embodiment of a bone plate 100 for splinting a fracture on a bone. The bone plate 100 includes a plurality of bone screw openings 110, with a bone contacting surface 120 of the plate including a roughened or textured bone contacting surface, which in this case comprises a plurality of protrusions 140 extending outward from the bone contacting surface 130. The plurality of protrusions 140 can include structures, surfaces and/or portions thereof that interact with the bone to desirably increase securement between the plate and the bone. Such securement can include the use of one or more bone screws (not shown) which desirably draw one or more surfaces of the plate into intimate contact the one or more surfaces of the bone.

[0051] FIG. 2A depicts another exemplary embodiment of a bone plate for splinting a fracture on a bone, wherein the plate is a substantially uniform elongated plate surface with various protrusions extending outward from the bone contacting surface.

[0052] FIG. 2B depicts an enlarged bone contacting surface 210 of another exemplary embodiment of a bone plate 200, wherein the protrusions 220 comprise a series of pyramidal and/or partial pyramidal shaped structures extending outward from the surface 210. While the protrusion in this embodiment are of similar shaped and/or sized pyramids, in alternative embodiments the protrusions may be of similar shapes but different sizes, or alternatively may be of similar sizes but different shapes, or in even other alternative embodiments may be of different sizes and different shapes on the same bonne contacting surfaces. In still other embodiments the protrusions may be positioned in aligned, repeating rows of similar orientation, while in other embodiments the alignment, positioning, spacing and/or orientation of adjacent protrusions (or any combinations thereof) may be different. Such configurations can include projections that may be distributed uniformly across a given surface or projections that may be distributed non-uniformly about the given surface. In a similar manner, such configurations can include projections that are aligned with each other across a given surface, or projections that may not be aligned with each other, such as where individual projections may be configured at varying orientations within a given surface or surface region. Alternative projection embodiments may include symmetrical or non-symmetrical placement of protrusions in a given region.

[0053] FIG. 3 depicts an enlarged bone contacting surface 310 of still another exemplary embodiment of a bone plate 300, wherein the protrusions 320 comprise a series of elongated tent or peaked structures extending outward from the surface 310. In a similar manner to the previous embodiment, while the protrusions in this embodiment are of similar shaped and/or sized structures, in alternative embodiments the protrusions may be of similar shapes but different sizes, or alternatively may be of similar sizes but different shapes, or in even other alternative embodiments may be of different sizes and different shapes on the same bonne contacting surfaces. While the protrusions of this embodiment are positioned in varying orientations, on other embodiments the protrusions may be positioned in aligned, repeating rows of similar orientations, or the alignment, positioning, spacing and/or orientation of adjacent protrusions (or any combinations thereof) may differ.

[0054] FIG. 4 depicts an orthopedic plate 400 secured to a long bone 410 by a plurality of bone screws 420. Because the plate 400 desirably incorporates a plurality of bone screw openings, a physician may decide to utilize one or more of the openings to accommodate one or more bone screws to secure the plate to the desired anatomical structures. It should be understood that the physician need not necessarily utilize all of the bone screw openings for securement screws and/or bone fixation in a given procedure.

[0055] FIGS. 5A and 5B depict an exemplary securement of a bone plate 500 to a bone surface 590. Desirably, the bone plate 500 will include a series of projections 510 or other roughened surface features which face towards the bone surface. Once the bone plate 500 approaches and contacts the bone surface 590 (such as when the surgeon advances and/or tightens bone screws extending through the bone plate into the bone), some portions of the projections will desired contact, penetrate and/or interdigitate with the underlying tissues and/or the bone surface (see FIG. 5B). This will desirably secure the bone plate 500 to the bone surface 590, and desirably reduce and/or eliminate transverse, lateral and/or sliding movement of the plate relative to the bone, as well as various other modalities of movement (i.e., rotational torsion and/or wobbling or toggling). If desired, the surgeon may decide to further advance the bone screws at any point during the implantation surgery, which can increase the Normal force and draw the projections further into the bone surface. In various embodiments, while some portion of the projections may contract and/or penetrate the bone surface, some other base portions 520 of the projections and/or various planar surface portions 530 of the bone plate may not directly contact the bone surface. FIG. 5C depicts an alternative securement of a bone plate, wherein the bone surface may present a rough or irregular surface to the bone plate, with some portion of the projections interdigitating with various of the surface irregularities. In such a case, some of the projections may interlock or interdigitate with various surface features, while other projections may penetrate the surface of the bone, which may provide even more resistance to movement between the plate and the bone.

[0056] FIG. 6 depicts an exemplary series of plate and screw movements relative to a bone plate that can result in screw toggle and eventual screw “pullout” from the plate due to motion at the plate/bone interface. Desirably, the improved fixation between the bone plate and the underlying bone provided by the present invention will minimize and/or eliminate such movements.

[0057] As best shown in FIG. 7A, in conventional bone plating systems, the stability of an implant construct can depend upon (1) the normal force between the plate and the bone (which is primarily due to the screw torque or F=T/cD, and (2) the forces which resist lateral or sliding movement between the plate and bone, primarily the resistive force of friction (i.e., coefficient of friction or μ)—with such resistance being represented by the equation F.sub.s=μ.sub.sN (where F.sub.s is the force of static friction, μ.sub.s is the coefficient of static friction and N is the Normal force. Referring now to FIG. 7B, these various forces will act on the bone plate in a variety of directions.

[0058] In various studies using conventional stainless steel or titanium bone plates, an average coefficient of friction between the plate and human or animal long bones has been experimentally determined to be μ=0.37, with an average torque applied to bone screws by a trauma surgeon of T=5.6 in-lb or 0.632 N-m. In many instances, this amount of torque has a limitation due to overall bone strength, and thus the Normal force from FIGS. 7A and 7B may be limited in how much force can be applied before anatomical failure. By increasing the effective coefficient of friction as described herein, however, it can be possible to dramatically improve the construct's resistant to motion relative to the bone without requiring dramatically increasing screw torque, which has been heretofore required.

[0059] As depicted in FIG. 8, a linear relationship can exist between the Force of static friction and both the Coefficient of static friction and the Normal force. By creating a textured and/or roughened bone facing surface on the static plate 900 depicted in FIGS. 9A and 9B, therefore, the effective coefficient of friction between a textured plate and the bone surface can be dramatically increased, thereby increasing the resistance to unwanted plate/bone movement (and other effects) as described herein.

[0060] In various embodiments, a bone plate or components thereof can be formed using a variety of techniques, including by forging, casting, milling and/or extruding into sheet, tube and/or pipe form, as well as by weaving and/or braiding of component thread or “rope” into an implant by a variety of techniques. Plate shapes or surface features therein may be manufactured using subtractive manufacturing techniques (i.e., machining, milling and/or surface roughening), as well as by using additive manufacturing techniques (i.e., surface coating, brazing, welding, bonding, deposition on various material surfaces and/or even by 3D laser printing of structures). If desired, a bone plate or portions thereof may even be formed using curing or other light/energy activation techniques, such as where a slurry of liquid polymer, ceramic and/or metal particles may be UV cured to create a 3-dimensional structure and/or layer on the bone plate. In various embodiments, materials may be utilized in block form, in sheets, columns and bars, in cable or braided form, in mesh form, or in a textured surface coating, in powder form, in granular form and/or as a surface filler and/or coating. In some cases, a surface layer may be formed, placed and/or deposited on an external surface of an existing bone implant.

[0061] FIG. 10A depicts a “smooth” plate 1000 that has been 3D printed from a polymer precursor, while FIG. 10B depicts a textured plate 1010 having similar dimensional features which additionally incorporates a roughened bone facing surface. The employment of 3D printing of such plates can greatly enhance the utility and durability of such devices, as CAD modeling may be utilized in conjunction with 2D or 3D scans of the patient's anatomy to desirably create a bone plate having characteristics particularly useful to address the patient's unique anatomical conditions and/or surgical objectives—especially if such plate manufacture can be accomplished immediately prior to and/or during the surgical procedure. Aside from accommodating the unique anatomy of an individual patient, a wide variety of plate features and/or characteristics such as plate size, shape and/or placement of fixation holes can be particularized in an individual plate design. Similarly, the location and/or type of texturing may be modified for a given patient, such as where only a portion of the plate surface is expected to contact a bony surface of the patient. In such a case, that region (or multiple regions) of the plate may include a variety of surface features, including those described herein, to desirably increased the localized securement with the bone, while other surfaces may remain smooth or non-roughened for a variety of reasons, such as to reduce a potential for irritation and/or unwanted damage to surrounding tissues.

[0062] An experimental comparison of smooth and textured bone plates similar to those depicted in FIGS. 10A and 10B was performed. In this experiment, biomechanical humerus sawbones models were utilized, with bone fractures created using a hand saw. The test bone plates were attached to the bone models using stainless steel screws secured with a torque of 20 in-lbs, and an Instron Testing Machine was tasked to pull a constantly increasing load on the ends of the bone models, with each experiment stopped at a point where gross motion of the fracture site was observed visually.

[0063] FIG. 11 graphically depicts the motion resistance of the textured plate and smooth plates on a similar bone surface analog. More specifically, the textured plate resisted significantly more force than the smooth plate (i.e., 590N versus 462N). Moreover, the steeper curve of the textured plate as compared to the smooth plate demonstrated that the textured plate also allowed significantly less displacement or extension across the bone fracture for a given applied load (as compared to the smooth plate)—thus the textured plate could withstand significantly greater loading than the smooth plate for a variety of conditions. As significant movement across the fracture site could dramatically interfere with bone healing as well as could cause significant patient pain, this greater resistance to bone movement was deemed a significant improvement over the standard smooth plates currently available.

[0064] FIG. 12A depicts another embodiment of textured plates, for dynamic tensile testing purposes, where one-hole plates were used and secured to a test fixture. FIG. 12B graphically depicts the results of this dynamic testing model, which demonstrated that a textured plate requires significantly more force to achieve the same amount of displacement as compared to a non-textured plate. In this example, 2 mm of displacement was set as the required displacement, and the force required to achieve this displacement over many cycles was recorded. This example was done using a “pyramid” type texture in the test construct of FIG. 12A.

[0065] Right

[0066] In various embodiments, features of the disclosed invention could be incorporated into virtually any type of plate currently used to achieve bony stability, including traditional compression plates, limited contact compression plates, locking plates, spine plates such as anterior vertebral plates, reconstruction plates, etc. It is believed that almost any bone contacting plate or implant could potentially benefit from the higher force of resistive friction provided by the present invention, and such improvements to existing device designs are contemplated herein.

[0067] It should also be understood that the specific materials comprising the disclosed bone plates may not be critical in some embodiments, as these improvements may be useful in devices comprising materials such as stainless steel, titanium, cobalt chromium, as well as newer materials such as amorphous metals and bulk metallic glass. Virtually any implant material may have the potential to be improved as described herein, and some materials may further incorporate some or all of the benefits described herein due to ease of manufacturing in order to achieve optimal friction patterning.

[0068] Desirably, the enhancement of the coefficient of friction between the plate and bone by changing the surface of the plate that is contacting the bony surface will greatly enhance the resulting force of resistive friction, both statically and dynamically. Many possible textures or surface features, including external projections such as “pyramid type” points, ridges, chevrons, treads, etc., may significantly improve such friction, while other patterns such as inward facing or “negative” patterns (i.e., inward or “relief” type patterns machined into a bone-facing surface of the implant) may similarly be useful in various embodiments, and these patterns are contemplated herein as well.

[0069] While the plate to bone fixation herein is described in conjunction with screw fixation, it should be understood that various other fixation modalities may be utilized with the various embodiments described herein, including the use of other fixation devices (i.e., pins, staples, etc.) as well as adhesives and/or non-penetrating securement mechanism such as clamps, etc. In various embodiments, the disclosed screws may function in the same way as existing plate and screw fixation constructs by achieving unicortical or bicortical compression through torque, translating to a normal force between the plate and bone to “squeeze” these two materials together. Compression of the plate to the bone may also be achieved by clamps in certain fixation scenarios, which could then be secured by traditional non-locking or locking screws.

[0070] FIG. 13 depicts one exemplary embodiment of a bone plate for dynamic tensile testing purposes 1300 having a screw hole 1310 formed similar to holes of a convention limited contact dynamic compression plate (LC-DCP), wherein a surface of the plate proximate to the screw hole 1310 incorporates a textured surface 1320 in accordance with various teachings of the present invention. In use, this textured surface would desirably be drawn into intimate contact with the bone surface by a screw (not shown) extending through the screw hole 1310 into the bone. Bone plates of various lengths, screw hole number, sizes, and patterns could be derived from this embodiment. This embodiment also includes a second textured surface 1330 proximate to a connection hole 1340.

[0071] FIGS. 14A and 14B depict several different surface texture designs which were developed and constructed and were then tested against equivalent sized smooth plates to determine values for a coefficient of friction. From this testing, it appeared that pyramid shapes of 0.01 inch in size performed optimally for the proposed plate design, although further optimization of various designs might show additional improvements in various areas. The patterns analyzed included ridged shapes, pyramid shapes, treat shapes and grit shapes. In various embodiments, altering the bone facing surface of a smooth bone plate with ridged shaped projections of varying heights can increase the static coefficient of 0.363 (for a smooth plate) to 0.401 (a greater than 10% increase) or to 0.502 (a greater than 38% increase) for a surface with ridge shaped projections, with similar improvements demonstrated with other projections and/or texture types. Moreover, these results show a dramatic improvement over simple blasting or grit finishing of bone plate surfaces, as such grit surface finishes might actually reduce the static coefficient to a level below that of a smooth plate (see FIG. 13A—“Gritty” column)). In various embodiments, therefore, the provision of one or more geometric patterned protrusion regions on a bone facing surface can desirably increase the coefficient of static friction for the plate or some specific regions therein by 5% or more (as compared to a smooth or gritty surface), or by 10% or more, or by 15% or more, or by 20% or more, or by 25% or more, or by 30% or more or by 35% or more, or by 50% or more, or by 100% or more, or any combinations or permutations thereof.

[0072] FIG. 15A depicts another exemplary experiment comparing plates with the addition of bone facing textured surfaces against smoother surfaced plates, wherein 6 plates were designed and manufactured (i.e., 3D printed), with 3 of the plate sets being textured (i.e., 100, 200 and 300% designed size) and three of the plate sets being smooth (i.e., 100, 200 and 300% designed size). The experimental design was to apply an eight hundred (800) gram weight on a top surface of the 3D printed plate and measuring a Friction force using a tensiometer while applying a 4 N lateral load, with 10 runs per plate. An analysis on the force of friction as well as the coefficient of friction was conducted. FIG. 15B graphically depicts various results from the experiment of FIG. 15A.

[0073] Statistical analysis of this experimental data was performed with a 2-tailed T-test, which demonstrated that roughening and/or texturing the bone contact surface of the plate had a significant impact on increases of the coefficient of friction, and also on increased force of friction (See FIGS. 15C and 15D). A graphic depiction of these results in provided in FIGS. 15E and 15F.

[0074] Desirably, the disclosed surface enhancement of orthopedic surgical plates and/or similar devices will increase the securement due to the force of resistive friction at the bone/plate interface in order to create a more stable construct and greatly reduce wear to and/or fracture of the system components. In addition to allowing the plate to accommodate higher loading, the present invention can significantly reduce toggle and/or fracture of the bone screws—greatly enhancing the utility of the disclosed devices and well as existing system forces that may be modified in accordance with various teachings of the present invention.

[0075] In various embodiments, a proposed design may include the creation of a “textured” surface proximate to a securement device (i.e., bone screw) in order to enhance the coefficient of friction between the plate and the bone near that location in order to limit motion and increase stability of various fixation constructs.

[0076] In various embodiments, the implants and/or portions may comprise a variety of surgically acceptable materials, including radiopaque and/or radiolucent materials, other materials or combinations of such materials. Radiolucent materials can include, but are not limited to, polymers, carbon composites, fiber-reinforced polymers, plastics, combinations thereof and the like. Radiopaque materials are traditionally used to construct devices for use in the medical device industry. Radiopaque materials can include, but are not limited to, metal, aluminum, stainless steel, titanium, titanium alloys, cobalt chrome alloys, combinations thereof and the like.

[0077] In accordance with various aspects of the present subject matter, bone-contacting surfaces of the various implant components described herein may optionally include coatings that are highly osteo-inductive and/or osteoconductive to desirably facilitate and/or promote fixation to adjacent living bone surfaces, if desired.

[0078] If desired, a surgical “kit” could include bone plate components of differing shapes and/or sizes constructed from the same or a variety of different materials, including plates having a variety of different bone anchors and/or interface surfaces, including bone ingrowth surfaces. If desired, such implants and/or the components thereof could be provided in a kit form for selection and/or assembly in situ during a surgical procedure. If desired, various components may be removable and/or replaceable.

[0079] In accordance with another aspect of the present subject matter, various methods for manufacturing implants and/or components thereof, as set for within any of the details described with the present application, may be provided.

[0080] While embodiments and applications of the present subject matter have been shown and described, it would be apparent that other embodiments, applications and aspects are possible and are thus contemplated and are within the scope of this application.

[0081] In various embodiments, a surgical tool kit could include a plurality of bone plate implants and one or more modular components for the system. The various components of these systems could optionally be provided in kit form, with a medical practitioner having the option to select an appropriately sized and/or shaped implant and/or modular components to address a desired surgical situation.

[0082] Note that, in various alternative embodiments, variations in the position and/or relationships between the various figures and/or modular components are contemplated, such that different relative positions of the various modules and/or component parts, depending upon specific module design and/or interchangeability, may be possible. In other words, different relative adjustment positions of the various components may be accomplished via adjustment in separation and/or surface angulation of one of more of the components to achieve a variety of resulting implant configurations, shapes and/or sizes, thereby accommodating virtually any expected anatomical variation.

[0083] Of course, method(s) for manufacturing the various modular components and/or surgical devices and related components and implanting a bone plate into a patent are contemplated and are part of the scope of the present application.

[0084] While embodiments and applications of the present subject matter have been shown and described, it would be apparent to those skilled in the art that many more modifications are possible without departing from the inventive concepts herein. The subject matter, therefore, is not to be restricted except in the spirit of the appended claims.

[0085] All references, including publications, patent applications, and patents, cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each reference were individually and specifically indicated to be incorporated by reference and were set forth in its entirety herein.

[0086] The various headings and titles used herein are for the convenience of the reader and should not be construed to limit or constrain any of the features or disclosures thereunder to a specific embodiment or embodiments. It should be understood that various exemplary embodiments could incorporate numerous combinations of the various advantages and/or features described, all manner of combinations of which are contemplated and expressly incorporated hereunder.

[0087] The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention are to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing” are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, but not limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. Recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., i.e., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the invention.

[0088] Preferred embodiments of this invention are described herein, including the best mode known to the inventor for carrying out the invention. Variations of those preferred embodiments may become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. The inventor expects skilled artisans to employ such variations as appropriate, and the inventor intends for the invention to be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, this invention includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.