KR20240149112A - Cage for spinal surgery - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a spinal surgical cage, which includes a base expandable member that expands through an expansion fluid accommodated therein, a support expandable member that expands through a curable resin accommodated therein, a fluid supply unit connected to the base expandable member and controlling the injection of the expansion fluid into the base expandable member, and a resin supply unit connected to the support expandable member and controlling the injection of the curable resin into the support expandable member, wherein after a vertebral body is supported by the expansion of the base expandable member, the vertebral body is supported by the expansion of the support expandable member in a space between the vertebral bodies excluding the space in which the base expandable member is arranged.

Description

Cage for spinal surgery

The present invention relates to a spinal surgical cage that maintains the height of the intervertebral disc space, which is a space between vertebral bodies, and maintains stability until bone fusion.

The spine is generally made up of 24 bones (excluding the sacrum), and each bone is connected by a joint called an intervertebral disc (disk), which supports the spine and acts as a cushion.

Through this, the spine not only helps maintain human posture, but also serves as the foundation for movement and plays an important role in protecting internal organs.

However, if an abnormal posture is maintained for a long time, or if there is a degenerative disease due to aging or an external impact, the spine may be damaged or misaligned, causing severe pain by compressing the nerves passing through the spinal canal. In other words, patients with damaged parts of the spine cannot perform activities necessary for personal life, and even if the degree of damage is not severe, the damaged part of the spine may press or touch other adjacent parts, causing pain.

Therefore, in the case of spinal diseases, the damaged intervertebral disc is removed to prevent the nerves from being compressed or compressed, and a hollow metal or plastic cage is filled with bone fragments and inserted into the area where the intervertebral disc was removed.

At this time, conventional spinal surgical cages are helpful in restoring spinal alignment the larger and higher they are, but this results in the need for a larger surgical scope to insert the cage. In particular, there is a problem in that complex surgery via the abdominal or thoracic cavity is required, which increases the inconvenience and risk of the surgery.

The related technology for such a spinal surgical cage is presented in Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2022-0092688 (July 4, 2022).

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a spinal surgical cage that supports the spine so that stable spinal alignment is achieved while minimizing the surgical scope during spinal surgery.

The present invention provides a spinal surgical cage, comprising: a base expandable member that expands through an expansion fluid accommodated therein; a support expandable member that expands through a curable resin accommodated therein; a fluid supply unit that is connected to the base expandable member and controls the injection of the expansion fluid into the base expandable member; and a resin supply unit that is connected to the support expandable member and controls the injection of the curable resin into the support expandable member. The cage supports a spinal body by the expansion of the support expandable member in a space between the vertebrae excluding the space in which the base expandable member is arranged after the vertebrae are supported by the expansion of the base expandable member.

In addition, the above-mentioned basic expansion member is provided with a fluid storage space for accommodating the expansion fluid, and may be made of an elastic material.

In addition, the support expansion member is provided with a resin storage space for accommodating the curable resin, and may be made of an elastic material.

Additionally, the base expansion member and the support expansion member can be removably connected to each other.

Additionally, the support expansion member may be arranged to surround a portion of the perimeter of the base expansion member.

Additionally, the support expansion member can be connected to the outside of the base expansion member with the base expansion member as the center.

In addition, the base expansion member may have a circular cross-sectional shape when expanded, and the support expansion member may have a 'C'-shaped cross-sectional shape when expanded.

In addition, the fluid supply unit may further include a fluid supply line connected to the base expansion member, and a fluid supply means connected to the fluid supply line and controlling the amount of expansion fluid injected into the fluid storage space.

Additionally, the expanding fluid may be a contrast agent.

In addition, the resin supply unit may further include a resin supply line connected to the support expansion member, and a resin supply means connected to the resin supply line and controlling the amount of curable resin injected into the resin storage space.

Additionally, the curable resin may be PMMA.

In addition, when the curable resin contained in the above-described support expandable member hardens and the above-described base expandable member is detached from the body, a space for receiving a grafted bone can be formed between the vertebrae.

A spinal surgical cage according to the present invention supports the space between vertebral bodies within the body by expansion of a basic expandable member containing an expanding fluid, and supports the space between vertebral bodies in a stable alignment state by hardening of the hardening resin in a space between vertebral bodies excluding the space between vertebral bodies where the basic expandable member is placed by expansion of a supporting expandable member containing a hardening resin.

In addition, the spinal surgical cage can be inserted in a contracted state with the volume minimized by placing the base expansion member and the support expansion member in the space between the vertebral bodies in the body, so the surgical site can also be minimized.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a spinal surgical cage according to one embodiment of the present invention.
Figures 2 and 3 are diagrams showing the installation state between vertebral bodies of a spinal surgical cage according to one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the installation state after filling the graft bone after removing the base expansion member of the spinal surgical cage according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. Prior to this, the terms or words used in this specification and claims should not be interpreted as limited to their usual or dictionary meanings, and should be interpreted as meanings and concepts that conform to the technical idea of the present invention based on the principle that the inventor can appropriately define the concept of the term in order to explain his or her own invention in the best way.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, a spinal surgical cage according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a base expandable member (100), a support expandable member (200), a fluid supply unit (300), and a resin supply unit (400). The spinal surgical cage supports the vertebral bodies (10) by placing the base expandable member (100) and the support expandable member (200) in a space between vertebral bodies (10) of the body, that is, in a removed vertebral body space or a removed intervertebral disc space. Here, the base expandable member (100) and the support expandable member (200) may be detachably connected to each other. Specifically, the base expandable member (100) and the support expandable member (200) may be detachably connected by an adhesive means such as a double-sided tape or an adhesive, but it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited thereto and may be connected by a known detachable means.

The above-mentioned base expansion member (100) is positioned between the vertebral body (10) together with the support expansion member (200) and is a part that supports the vertebral body (10). To explain in more detail, the base expansion member (100) temporarily supports the vertebral body (10) in a state in which it is expanded by an expansion fluid until the curable resin injected into the support expansion member (200) is cured.

And, the above-mentioned support expansion member (200) is expanded by the hardening resin in the space between the vertebral bodies (10) excluding the space between the vertebral bodies (10) where the basic expansion member (100) is placed, and as the hardening resin hardens, it plays a role of permanently supporting the space between the vertebral bodies (10).

In this way, the base expansion member (100) and the support expansion member (200) are in an expanded state in which their volumes increase only when an expansion fluid or a curable resin is injected into the inside, and are in a contracted state in which their volumes decrease when no expansion fluid or a curable resin is injected into the inside, so that the surgical range for insertion and placement between the vertebral bodies (10) can be minimized.

The above-described basic expansion member (100) expands by receiving an expansion fluid supplied from outside the body. To this end, the basic expansion member (100) is provided with a fluid storage space (100a) for receiving the expansion fluid on the inside, and may be made of an elastic material so that expansion or contraction occurs depending on whether the expansion fluid is injected into the fluid storage space (100a). Specifically, the basic expansion member (100) may be made of a known material that is both elastic and soft and is harmless to the human body when placed inside the body, and as a specific example, may be made of a synthetic resin such as rubber or silicone.

At this time, the expansion fluid accommodated in the fluid storage space (100a) of the basic expansion member (100) may be a contrast agent. In this way, when the expansion fluid is applied as a contrast agent, the degree of expansion of the basic expansion member (100) by the expansion fluid between the vertebrae (10) can be determined using a medical imaging device.

Here, the base expansion member (100) can be arranged so that it can be separated from the body between the vertebral bodies (10) in a contracted state by discharging the expansion fluid contained in the fluid storage space (100a) to the outside of the body when the hardening resin contained in the support expansion member (200) is hardened. In addition, the space between the vertebral bodies (10) where the base expansion member (100) was arranged can be provided in a filled state with a graft bone (not shown). This graft bone allows the fusion of the spaced vertebral bodies (10).

The above-mentioned support expansion member (200) expands by receiving a curable resin supplied from outside the body. To this end, the support expansion member (200) is provided with a resin storage space (200a) for receiving the curable resin on the inside, and may be made of an elastic material so that expansion or contraction occurs depending on whether the curable resin is received in the resin storage space (200a). Specifically, the support expansion member (200) may be made of a known material that is both elastic and ductile and is harmless to the human body when placed inside the body, and as a specific example, may be made of a synthetic resin such as rubber or silicone. Here, it is preferable that the support expansion member (200) have a more flexible ductility than the basic expansion member (100) described above.

At this time, the curable resin accommodated in the resin storage space (200a) of the above-mentioned support expansion member (200) may be PMMA. Here, the curable resin may be composed of a small amount of contrast medium. In this way, when the contrast medium is mixed into the curable resin, the degree of expansion of the support expansion member (200) due to the curable resin between the vertebral bodies (10) can be identified using a medical imaging device.

And, when the support expansion member (200) is connected to the base expansion member (100), it can be arranged to surround only a portion of the circumference of the base expansion member (100). Here, the support expansion member (200) can stably support the vertebral bodies (10) between the vertebral bodies (10) when it expands and hardens with a hardening resin while wrapping only a portion of the circumference of the base expansion member (100).

In addition, the support expansion member (200) may be connected to the outside of the base expansion member (100) with the base expansion member (100) as the center. At this time, as a specific example, the base expansion member (100) may have a circular cross-sectional shape when expanded, and the support expansion member (200) may be provided with a 'C'-shaped cross-sectional shape when expanded, but it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited thereto.

In addition, since the support expansion member (200) is arranged to surround only a portion of the circumference of the base expansion member (100), when the base expansion member (100) is to be detached from between the vertebral bodies (10) inside the body to the outside, stable detachment is possible while minimizing interference by the support expansion member (200) in an expanded state between the vertebral bodies (10) after the base expansion member (100) is contracted.

The above fluid supply unit (300) is a unit that controls the amount of expansion fluid injected into the fluid storage space (100a). More specifically, the fluid supply unit (300) enables the supply of expansion fluid from outside the body to the fluid storage space (100a) or the discharge of expansion fluid from the fluid storage space (100a) to outside the body. The fluid supply unit (300) may be equipped with a fluid supply line (110) and a fluid supply means (120).

Here, the fluid supply line (110) is a tubular member that guides the movement of the expansion fluid from outside the body to the fluid storage space (100a) or from the fluid storage space (100a) to outside the body. One longitudinal end of the fluid supply line (110) is connected to the base expansion member (100) so as to communicate with the fluid storage space (100a), and the other longitudinal end of the fluid supply line (110) can be connected to the fluid supply means (120).

The above fluid supply means (120) may be composed of a fluid storage tank (not shown) that stores expansion fluid, and a pumping means (not shown) that generates a pumping force so that the expansion fluid stored in the fluid storage tank is moved to the basic expansion member (100) through the fluid supply line (110) or the expansion fluid stored in the basic expansion member (100) is moved back to the fluid storage tank through the fluid supply line (110). In this way, the pumping means controls the amount of expansion fluid received in the basic expansion member (100) while allowing the degree of expansion of the basic expansion member (100) to be adjusted.

The above resin supply unit (400) is a unit that controls the amount of curable resin injected into the resin storage space (200a). More specifically, the resin supply unit (400) enables the supply of curable resin from outside the body to the resin storage space (200a) or the discharge of expansion fluid from the resin storage space (200a) to outside the body. The resin supply unit (400) may be equipped with a resin supply line (210) and a resin supply means (220).

Here, the resin supply line (210) is a tubular member that guides the movement of the curable resin from outside the body to the resin storage space (200a) or from the resin storage space (200a) to outside the body. One longitudinal end of the resin supply line (210) is connected to the support expansion member (200) so as to be in communication with the resin storage space (200a), and the other longitudinal end of the resin supply line (210) can be connected to the resin supply means (220).

The above resin supply means (220) may be composed of a resin storage tank (not shown) that stores a curable resin, and a pumping means (not shown) that generates a pumping force so that the curable resin stored in the resin storage tank is moved to the support expansion member (200) through the resin supply line (210) or the curable resin stored in the resin expansion member (200) is moved back to the resin storage tank through the resin supply line (210). In this way, the pumping means controls the amount of the curable resin accommodated in the support expansion member (200) while allowing the degree of expansion of the support expansion member (200) to be adjusted.

A method for installing a spinal surgical cage of one embodiment configured as described above between vertebral bodies is described as follows.

First, the base expansion member (100) and the support expansion member (200) are placed in the space between the vertebral bodies (10) within the body in a contracted state in which the expansion fluid and the hardening resin are not received, respectively.

Thereafter, expansion fluid is supplied to the fluid storage space (100a) of the above-mentioned basic expansion member (100) through the fluid supply unit (300), and as the basic expansion member (100) expands, the vertebral bodies (10) are maintained in a supporting state in the space between the vertebral bodies (10).

And, a curable resin is supplied to the resin storage space (200a) of the above-mentioned support expansion member (200) through the resin supply unit (400), and as the support expansion member (200) expands, the base expansion member (100) is placed in the space between the vertebral bodies (10) excluding the space between the vertebral bodies (10) where the base expansion member (100) is placed, and the vertebral bodies (10) that are spaced apart are maintained in a supported state together with the base expansion member (100).

Thereafter, when the curing of the curable resin contained in the resin storage space (200a) of the above-mentioned support expansion member (200) is completed, the expansion fluid contained in the fluid storage space (100a) of the base expansion member (100) is discharged back to the outside of the body through the fluid supply unit (300), thereby causing the base expansion member (100) to contract. Then, the contracted base expansion member (100) can be detachably placed outside of the body.

In this way, when the base expandable member (100) is detached between the vertebral bodies (10), a space (500) for receiving a bone graft can be formed between the vertebral bodies (10). The bone graft received in the space (500) formed by the detachment of the base expandable member (100) causes bone fusion between the vertebral bodies (10) supported by the supporting expandable member (200).

A spinal surgical cage in which a space for accommodating a grafted bone is formed between the vertebral bodies when the curable resin contained in the above-mentioned support expandable member hardens and the above-mentioned basic expandable member is detached from the body.

In this way, the spinal surgical cage of one embodiment supports the space between the vertebral bodies (10) within the body by the expansion of the base expandable member (100) containing the expansion fluid, and by the expansion of the support expandable member (200) containing the hardening resin, the space between the vertebral bodies (10) excluding the space between the vertebral bodies (10) where the base expandable member (100) is placed is hardened so that the vertebral bodies (10) can be supported in a stable alignment state.

In addition, when the base expansion member (100) and the support expansion member (200) are placed in the space between the vertebral bodies (10) within the body, they can be inserted in a state where the volume is minimized in a contracted state, so the surgical site can also be minimized.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings, these are merely exemplary, and those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and equivalent other embodiments are possible therefrom. Therefore, the true technical protection scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical idea of the appended claims.

10: Vertebrae 100: Basal dilatation
100a: Fluid storage space 200: Support expansion member
200a: Resin storage space 300: Fluid supply section
310: Fluid supply line 320: Fluid supply means
400: Resin supply section 410: Resin supply line
420: Resin supply means

Claims (12)

A base expansion member that expands through an expansion fluid contained therein;
A support expansion member that expands through a curable resin contained therein;
A fluid supply unit connected to the above-mentioned basic expansion member and controlling the injection of expansion fluid into the above-mentioned basic expansion member;
A resin supply unit connected to the above-mentioned support expansion member and controlling the injection of curable resin into the above-mentioned support expansion member;
A spinal surgical cage in which the vertebral body is supported by the expansion of the above-mentioned basic expandable member, and then the vertebral body is supported by the expansion of the above-mentioned supporting expandable member in the space between the vertebral bodies excluding the space in which the above-mentioned basic expandable member is placed.
In claim 1,
The above-mentioned basic expansion member is provided with a fluid storage space for accommodating the expansion fluid, and is a spinal surgical cage made of an elastic material.
In claim 1,
The above-mentioned support expansion member is provided with a resin storage space for accommodating the above-mentioned curable resin, and is a spinal surgical cage made of an elastic material.
In claim 1,
A spinal surgical cage in which the above-mentioned base expansion member and the above-mentioned support expansion member are removably connected to each other.
In claim 1,
A spinal surgical cage in which the above-mentioned supporting expansion member is positioned to surround a portion of the circumference of the above-mentioned base expansion member.
In claim 1,
The above-mentioned support expansion member is a spinal surgical cage connected to the outside with the above-mentioned base expansion member as the center.
In claim 6,
The above-mentioned basic expansion member has a circular cross-sectional shape when expanded,
The above-mentioned support expansion member is a spinal surgical cage having a cross-sectional shape in the shape of the letter ‘C’ when expanded.
In claim 1,
The above fluid supply unit includes a fluid supply line connected to the above base expansion member,
A spinal surgical cage further comprising a fluid supply means connected to the above fluid supply line and controlling the amount of inflation fluid injected into the fluid storage space.
In claim 1,
The above-mentioned expanding fluid is a spinal surgical cage containing a contrast agent.
In claim 1,
The above resin supply unit includes a resin supply line connected to the above support expansion member,
A spinal surgical cage further comprising a resin supply means that is connected to the above resin supply line and controls the amount of curable resin injected into the resin storage space.
In claim 1,
The above curable resin is a spinal surgical cage made of PMMA.
In claim 1,
A spinal surgical cage in which a space for accommodating a grafted bone is formed between the vertebral bodies when the curable resin contained in the above-mentioned support expandable member hardens and the above-mentioned basic expandable member is detached from the body.

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