What is Trauma Implants?
Trauma implants are the devices in orthopedic surgery. They are used to treat various traumas depending upon the type of injury. Trauma refers to ‘wound’ in Greek and any physical injury such as fracture, dislocation, sprains, strains, burns, etc come under a trauma.
In
orthopedics, trauma devices especially trauma plates are used to cure
fractures, especially in long bones. These implants are applied to the injury
in order to cure it temporarily or permanently. These trauma implants used for
bone fixation as well as to replace articulate surfaces in the joint.
Increments
in physical injuries have caused trauma implants to ensure their market
presence. The different types of orthopedic trauma implants enable the medical
doctors to choose a proper fitting implant according to the weight, size and
type of the individual.
Nails, screws, fixators and
plates are a few of the orthopedic trauma implants that are used to
repair fractured bones in orthopedic surgery. Plates are further divided into
non-locking and locking plates while the screws are further divided into
non-locking and locking screws.
Materials used in trauma
implants:
§ Stainless Steel
§ Titanium Alloys
§ Plastic Coating
§ Sometimes cemented for
improved adhesion.
What
care should be taken while using trauma implants?
Intense care should be
taken while designing, manufacturing and installing Trauma implants. Care must
be taken while installing because the heat produced by the friction can cause
damage to tissue bones.
Benefits
of Trauma Implants:
§ Repairs broken bone in
short time
§ No need to remove titanium
bone plates from body if you are older than 60 years of age
§ No need to remove plates
from body if you are underweight.
§ No need to remove plates
from body if it is implanted in your lower body.
Features
of Trauma Implants:
§ Biocompatible
§ Low or No Osseo integration
§ Excellent Gliding
Characteristics
§ High Tensile Strength and
Load
§ Relatively Low Modules of
Elasticity
§ High Ductility
§ Non-Magnetic
Trauma is further divided into:
Nails –
Orthopedic nails are used
for fractures like femur, tibia, etc. Its main purpose is to immobilize the
bone in proper alignment so that the bone’s ends do not overlap and cause
discomfort. Trauma nails are the metal rods that
are fixed in the medullar canal of long bones to hold the broken ends together.
Just like plates, these nails are also of different types and that depend upon
the size of fracture.
The
nails are further divided into 2 types:
§ Enders Nails
§ TENS Nails
§ Kuntscher Nails
§ Square Nails
§ Rush Nails
Screws
–
It is
proved that the fracture heals properly if the fracture fragments are pressed
firmly together. Orthopaedic screws are designed to do the same. Its primary
function is to stabilize the fracture in anatomic alignment. It helps in
decreasing the gap between fractures.
Screws are the hardware
device that is presents everywhere. They may be used alone to provide fixation
or can be used as a partner to other devices. A screw that is used to achieve
interfragmental compression is termed a lag screw. Such screws do not protect
fractures from bending, rotation or axial loading forces
There are two types of screws:
1.
Non locking screws
2.
Locking screws
Non Locking Screws:
locking screw:
Plates
–
Orthopedic plates are used
to fix bone fractures and allow it to heal. These orthopedic plates for were
first recorded in 1886 by Hansmann, of Heidelberg University, Germany.
Different anatomical locations require different shapes and sizes of plates.
Plates are now broadly acknowledged with diverse standard techniques of
osteosynthesis.
Plates should meet the following requirements in order to
be helpful:
§ Appropriate width and
thickness for the given bone
§ Must have enough and
symmetric hold on either side of the fracture
§ Must be closely different
from the contour of bone.
§ The plate must neutralize
all bending, shear, etc. that happens on the fracture
Plates are further divided into:
§ Non-Locking Plates
§ Locking Plates
Some of Locking Plates:
Locking
and Non-Locking Plates & Screws:
Locking plates/screws are costlier as compared to non-locking plates/screws but the use of
both types of plates yields similar output while treating the fractures.
Non-locking
plate/screw systems involve an accurate adaptation of the plate to the
underlying bone. Without this close contact, tightening of the screws will draw
the bone segments toward the plate, resulting in alterations in the position of
the osseous segments.
To
contact the underlying bone closely, in all areas is needless for the locking
plates. The screw gets ‘locked’ with the plate as it gets tightened and
stabilizes the segment without compressing the bone to the plate.
This
makes it impossible for the screw insertion to change the reduction. Locking
plates/screws do not disturb the underlying cortical bone perfusion as much as
non-locking plates/screws, which compresses the under surface of the plate to
the cortical bone.
In Trauma locking plate/screws systems, the
screws are not likely to loosen from the plate. Locking plates/screws have
reduced the number of inflammatory complexities from the loosening of the hardware.
It is known that loose hardware creates an inflammatory response and encourages
contamination.
It is seen that more
durable fixation is provided by locking plates/screws than the non-locking
plates/screws.
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