Surgery: splint – brace – or bandage – Orthopedic bandage – Splint or brace
Patent
1991-06-20
1994-12-13
Apley, Richard J.
Surgery: splint, brace, or bandage
Orthopedic bandage
Splint or brace
264221, 602 26, 602 8, A61F 500
Patent
active
053725727
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Knee orthesis appliances are used to stabilise the ligamentous apparatus in the knee.
Where knee orthesis appliances were previously prescribed mainly pre-operatively as a measure to prevent further damage to torn or overstretched ligaments and post-operatively after ligament surgery as protection, nowadays sportsmen from the most varied of disciplines use these knee splints more or less at will to protect against knee or ligament injuries.
The simplest version of the knee orthesis device has a monocentric joint; but it cannot correctly imitate the anatomical movement of the knee joint. The movement or the interplay between all elements of the knee involved in anatomical movement (joint surfaces of the femur and the tibia, cruciate ligaments, patella) is much more complex. This means that knee orthesis appliances having monocentric joints cannot move in synchrony with the thigh and the tibia. The result is annoying frictions, which reduce comfort when wearing one. Since monocentric joints are something of a temporary solution, they are not suitable for sportsmen.
The rolling/sliding movement of the knee joints which actually occurs physiologically and the particular position of the cruciate ligaments was studied and described by Menshik. The result is a so-called "linkover four bar chain" which has been named after him (hereinafter simply referred to as a four bar chain), which imitates the rolling/sliding movement very well and therefore effectively relieves the knee. However this is still far from constructing a knee splint which combines a high level of worn comfort and good management of the ligaments, preconditions which are considered to be self-evident in high performance sport today.
STATE OF THE ART
Today, ready-made splints are available for attaching to four bar chains which can be obtained separately. These knee splints are secured to the knee joint by ready to use bandages. These bandages have pockets into which the ready-made splints are inserted. However, the splints have a not inconsiderable amount of play in the pockets, therefore they move backwards and forwards, which is why the knee is badly managed in conventional splints. The security required by the ligament is therefore not available under heavy or extreme loads.
To now achieve a more exactly fitting shape, the most modern production techniques are exploited: with CAD/CAM support, knee splints can be milled out of a massive single block of carbon fibre, after measurements of the knee joint and associated parts of the femur and tibia have been taken by a laser scanner and digitised. However, knee splints manufactured in this way do not have a four bar chain and have the positive disadvantage of being very expensive due to the enormous technical expense (integrated CAD/CAM manufacturing station).
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The new carbon-fiber composite layer construction knee orthesis appliances are an extremely good fit and achieve their objective in an excellent manner thanks to the Menshik four bar chain.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 shows the overall view of the knee orthesis appliance,
FIG. 2 shows the construction/manufacture of the knee orthesis appliance
FIGS. 3a, 3b, 3c and 3d show parts of the four bar chain.
FIGS. 4a, 4b, 4c and 4d show the four bar chain assembled and its method of operation;
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Its low weight (approx 360 g) and simple manufacture based on a simple positive plaster cast (1) of the knee, are excellent additional characteristics of the carbon-fiber composite material knee orthesis appliance (7) (FIG. (1)). Because a simple plaster cast (1) serves as a base, this guarantees that the carbon-fiber composite construction knee orthesis appliance (7) can be manufactured at low prices and with consistently good quality in specially equipped orthopaedic workshops.
In detail, production is as follows: firstly a negative plaster cast is made of the leg which will wear the knee splint. The knee splint will involve three-q
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Medizinisch-Orthopadische Technik, vol. 108, No. 6, Nov./Dec. 1988 Gentner publisher stuttgart, DE, J. Eichler: "Knieorthesen", pp. 201-212, see p. 206, paragraph 8, Vierfach-Gelenke; p. 208-209: C.T.I.-knieorthese FIGS. 13, 16.
Apley Richard J.
Dvorak Linda C. M.
Tamagni AG
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