Abstract: In a joint prosthesis with a base piece for anchoring in the bone, a collar piece articulated thereon and defining a collar axis, and a collar extension on the collar piece situated on the collar axis, an articulation space is formed on the base piece. An articulation head of the collar piece is disposed therein. The joint prosthesis further includes a head cap disposed on the collar extension and at least one pressure piece for pressing the articulation head against the base of the articulation space. The pressure piece and the base piece can be connected. In a joint prosthesis of this kind, the pressure piece includes a pressure disc with a passage opening for the collar extension.

Abstract: An internal brace for distraction arthroplasty includes femoral and tibial components which can be fixed to a patient's femur and tibia and which in combination distract or separate the knee joint without substantially hindering mobility of the knee.

Abstract: An artificial joint member made of a polymeric material including a portion made of a polymeric substance has a sliding surface composed of a polymer having phosphoryl choline groups. With such an arrangement, the artificial joint member is provided with a sliding part capable of keeping a satisfactory lubricating state for a long time.

Abstract: A medical implant made of polymeric material having an increased oxidation resistance is formed by a method including the steps of placing a resin powder in a sealed container. A substantial portion of the oxygen is removed from the sealed contained by either a vacuum, an oxygen absorbent or by flushing with inert gas. The container is then repressurized with a gas such as nitrogen, argon, helium or neon so that long term storage may be possible. On use, the resin in transferred to a forming device which both melts and forms the resin in an oxygen reduced atmosphere to produce a polymeric raw material such as a rod or bar stock. The medical implant is then formed from this raw material annealed and sealed in an airtight package in an oxygen reduced atmosphere. The implant is then radiation sterilized and thereafter annealed in the package for a predetermined time and temperature sufficient to form cross-links between any free radicals in neighboring polymeric chains.

Abstract: A total elbow replacement prosthesis for dogs is provided. A humeral component has an elongated stem carried by the humerus and a generally cylindrical head carried by the stem. The cylindrical head has a spiral groove formed at an angle substantially the same as the angle of the trochlear notch in a healthy ulna. A radial ulnar component is provided having a body and a formed plastic seat against which the head of the humeral component sits and articulates. The plastic seat includes a vertical ridge which engages the spiral groove to provide lateral support for the prosthesis and to mimic the natural motion of a healthy elbow. The radial ulnar component is anchored to the ulnar. A radial cap is carried by the proximal end of the radius and has a domed surface adapted to engage a recess in the body of the radial ulna component.

Abstract: An articulating joint implant for use in the cervical spine includes a pair of opposing upper and lower elements having nested articulation surfaces providing a center of rotation of the implant above the adjacent vertebral body endplate surfaces in one mode of motion lateral bending and a center of rotation of the implant below those surfaces in flexion/extension, and that further permit axial rotation of the opposing elements relative to one another about the longitudinal axis of the spinal column through a range of angles without causing them to move in opposing directions along the longitudinal axis within that range. In preferred embodiments, the articulation surfaces further cause such opposite movement of the opposing elements beyond that range.

Abstract: Orthopedic implants which include the components of zirconium or zirconium-based alloys having surfaces coated with oxidized zirconium or alternatively, other orthopedic implants comprising abrasion resistant surfaces contacting surfaces of cross-linked polyethylene are disclosed. Such implants provide low friction, highly wear resistant coatings especially useful in artificial joints, such as hip joints, knee joints, elbows, etc., but also useful in other implant devices as well. The implants also find use as vertebral disc prostheses.

Abstract: Wheels, bearings, or other rotating elements are used to decrease friction in artificial joint components associated with knee and hip replacements, artificial ankles, elbows, wrist, finger joints, toe joints, and intervertebral discs. One or more seals may be used to trap debris inside the artificial joint. The seal may surround the periphery of the component(s), and may be used to hold a fluid within the joint. Various fluids or lubricants are applicable to these embodiments, including water or aqueous solutions, triglyceride oil, soybean oil, an inorganic oil (e.g. silicone oil or fluorocarbon), glycerin, ethylene glycol, or other animal, vegetable, synthetic oil, or combinations thereof could be used. The seal could be made of an expandable elastomer such as those used in medical devices for the cardiovascular system.

Abstract: Prosthetic joint replacement ensemble includes an artificial joint implant component having a non-bone-interfacing rough surface for ingrowth of fibrous tissue, preferably about a peripheral boundary. The component can be made of metal, and have the rough surface provided by porous metal coating. When the prosthesis is implanted, the extramedullary rough surface engenders ingrowth of soft fibrous tissue so that it forms, as it were, a reconstituted capsular “bag” in which wear debris from the joint, for example, ultra high molecular weight polyethylene wear debris, is trapped, thus keeping those particles from gaining access to supporting bone at the bone-prosthetic interface. And so, with mitigation of wear debris dispersion, debris wear-induced osteolysis can be ameliorated.

Abstract: A prosthetic component is configured to have intentional interruptions in an articulating face thereof. The intentional interruptions are configured to yield an optimum contact area or bearing surface, particularly with regard to low wear and greater lubricity through the application of lubrication and contact mechanics theory for the particular prosthetic component. Such optimization is applied to a wide range of prosthetic component sizes of the particular prosthetic component. The optimum range of percentage area of relief or interruptions, defined as a percentage of a baseline uninterrupted bearing surface area to be removed by the features of the interrupted bearing surface configuration is from 0.3% to 73.7% for hard-on-hard bearing components and from 5.7% to 83.2% for polyethylene-on-hard bearing components. The range for both hard-on-hard and polyethylene-on-hard implants translates to a relieved area ranging from 0.3% to 31.

Abstract: Artificial joints wherein the mating surfaces are both non-metallic, preferably plastic, even more preferably polyethylene and even more preferably ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene. Because neither of the bearing surfaces of the artificial joint are made of metal, there is a potential for greatly reduced wear, and consequently, a potential for reducing the number of joint replacement surgeries.

Abstract: A comprehensive modular implant system is provided that is especially adapted for limb preservation. The modular components of the system can be combined to perform proximal, distal or total long bone replacement. Each replacement component is connected by a Morse taper engagement. The Morse taper engagement can be augmented by interlocking anti-rotation features between adjacent components. Certain components are configured to form part of a skeletal joint, while other components are configured for engagement within existing portions of the long bone. A number of segmental components operate as spacers for spanning the length of a removed section of bone. Certain segmental components are provided in several lengths, with one group of lengths increasing in 5 mm increments. Combinations of the segmental components can accommodate replacement lengths from 25 mm to 170 mm in 5 mm increments.

Abstract: A joint implant, which is not itself a femoral component for a conventional hip joint replacement prosthesis having a diamond or diamond like coated ball, has a diamond or diamond like coated articulating surface. The coating can be transitional in nature. The implant can be based on a suitable support material, for example, a metal, a ceramic, or a plastic, with the support material being coated with the diamond or diamond like substance. The implant may be, for instance, for a ginglymous type, an enarthrodial type, or a digital joint. Convex and/or concave articulating surface(s) of a prosthesis can have the coating.

Abstract: Prosthetic joints, components for prosthetic joints, superhard bearing and articulation surfaces, diamond bearing and articulation surfaces, substrate surface topographical features, materials for making joints, bearing and articulation surfaces, and methods for manufacturing and finishing the same, and related information are disclosed, including a prosthetic joint having substrate surface topographical features and at least one diamond articulation surface.

Abstract: A joint prosthesis assembly includes a stem for disposition in a canal of a first bone constituting a first portion of the joint, a neck fixed to the stem, a collar fixed on the neck and having a peripheral groove, and an articulating head fixed on the neck. The assembly further includes a cup for disposition in a second bone constituting a second portion of the joint, an insert disposed in the cup to provide an interior lining for the cup, the insert being configured to receive the articulating head for movement therein, and the insert having a peripheral groove therein. A sleeve-shaped membrane is provided with a first O-ring fixed thereto at a first end thereof for disposition in the insert groove, and a second O-ring fixed thereto at a second end thereof for disposition in the collar groove. The membrane is thereby disposed to capture particulate debris generated by the articulating head in the insert. There is further contemplated a method for installing the assembly.

Abstract: Surface irregularities are removed from the inner wall of a femur cavity, preferably tapered. A tamp having an opening and a socket is disposed in the cavity. The tamp may be one of a plurality of tamps each having a different length for the opening. A guide, one of a plurality, fits snugly in the opening. The guide has a collar which cooperates with the tamp socket to limit the movement of the guide into the tamp. A working portion of each guide below the intermediate position has a bulbous shape which is tapered in accordance with the femur taper. Bone fragments between the guide working portion and the femur inner wall are packed against the inner wall when the tamp and the guide are driven into the femur cavity. Numerals on the guide adjacent a slot in the tamp indicate the disposition of the guide in the tamp.

Abstract: The invention shows an artificial finger joint comprising a convex joint head and comprising a concave joint shell which can be fastened independently of one another with a respective shaft in a bone end and which can be moved in an articulation plane from an extension position with parallel shaft axes into a hyperextension position or into an articulation end position. A guide pin projects out of the joint shell in the direction of its shaft axis and protrudes into a pocket of the joint head, with the pocket having a first abutment for the guide pin in the hyperextension position. A second abutment between the joint shell and the joint head prevents a tilting of the guide pin and shaft of the joint shell about the first abutment in hyperextension position.

Abstract: A hip prosthesis comprising a first fastening assembly (1, 2, 6, 12, 13) intended for being mounted in the hip bone (A) and a second fastening assembly (4, 5, 7, 14) intended for being mounted in the upper extremity of the femur (F), wherein the first (1, 2, 6, 12, 13) and the second (4, 5, 7, 14) fastening assemblies are interconnected by means of a pivotable connection (8, 108) wherein all parts (1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8) of the hip prosthesis are so small and/or slender that they can each be arranged in the intended end position thereof via a bore (9) in the femur (F), which bore (9) extends from the outside (Fo) of the femur (F) through the femoral neck (Fn) substantially in the direction of the imaginary longitudinal center line (LFn) of the femoral neck (Fn) to the femoral head (Fh)

Abstract: A ball and socket joint for implanting in the body is provided wherein the socket portion of the joint can have various orientations with respect to the patient's anatomy, and the orientation used for a particular patient can be selected and/or changed in situ, that is, during or after implantation of the joint. In addition, the configuration of the joint, e.g., constrained versus semi-constrained, as well as the materials making up the socket portion of the joint, e.g., plastic versus metal, can be selected and/or changed in situ. The questions raised in reexamination request Nos. 90/004,732, filed Aug. 26, 1997 and 90/005,596, filed Jun. 22, 1999, have been considered and the results are reflected in this reissue.