Tsetse fly inspired steerable bone drill: a proof of concept

The fixation strength of pedicle screws could be increased by fixating along the much stronger cortical bone layer, which is not possible with the current rigid and straight bone drills. Inspired by the tsetse fly, a single-plane steerable bone drill was developed. The drill has a flexible transmission using two stacked leaf springs such that...

Development and validation of a bone quality measurement method integrated into the freehand drilling process

<b>Background:</b> Low bone quality associated with osteoporosis is an increasing health issue. The reduction in bone quality increases the risk of bone fractures and implant failure in osteosynthesis. Implant failure can be avoided by adapting the surgical procedure and postoperative care to the bone quality. This requires knowledge of the...

The development of an oscillating steerable bone drill

An improvement for pedicle screws would be if the screws can directly transfer their forces to the strong cortical bone of the vertebra, rather than through the softer cancellous bone. This approach requires the creation of a curved trajectory through cancellous bone. The goal of this project is to adapt the flexible oscillating drill design of...

Implementations of a Compact Drilling System (CDS) for bone

Bone drilling is a surgical action required for bone fixation using plates. The holes are currently drilled using a large, conventional drill. This causes problems when limited space is available, de to the size of the drill. For that reason a new, small Compact Drilling System is proposed. In earlier research a compact self-feeding mechanism...

Design of a combined optical and structural bone phantom: Concept validation and design tool

Introduction: Although being the most advanced spinal stabilization method, pedicle screw fixation has an increased number of complications compared to other surgical procedures, due to the complex spinal anatomy, large inter-patient anatomical variability, and the highly vulnerable surrounding tissue of the spine. Screw fixation strength can be...

The Design of a Compact Angular Drilling Device for Medical Application

The technology used in health care is one of the fastest developing fields in Precision Engineering. The main focus in this field is on the development of steerable, small dimensioned instruments. Using these, surgeries can be done with minimal damage to the patient, shorter hospital stay and more aesthetical healing.<br/>From the medical field...

Hydraulic actuator selection for a compliant surgical bone drill: A theoretical approach

A compliant bone drill provides advantages over conventional straight drills, because it allows surgical access via a minimally invasive approach. Hydropower allows the transfer of pressurized water with a compliant hose. The goal is to select the hydraulic actuator for this compliant bone drill by reviewing existing actuator principles. The...

Hydropowered minimally invasive surgical bone drill

A flexible bone drill provides advantages over conventional rigid instruments, because it allows surgical access via a minimally invasive approach. A new concept is to achieve this using hydropower. Hydropower could provide the advantage of energy transfer via a compliant hose through which pressurized water is flowing. The goal is to design a...

Design of a directional drilling device and development of a new spinal anchoring technique