Current screw/plate sternal closure for patients after open-heart surgery requires bicortical fixation which is disadvantageous due to the proximity of the heart. The goal of this project was to design, model and test a single-unit unicortical screw and plate system which provides both lag and locking functionality. The final design utilizes a novel reverse splaying of the head to provide a locking mechanism following initial tightening. The design also allows the surgeon to properly locate and secure the bone to the plate prior to engagement of a locking mechanism. Cyclic shear loading will be used to compare the effectiveness of this screw design with standard non-locking unicortical and bicortical screws.

• This report represents the work of one or more WPI undergraduate students submitted to the faculty as evidence of completion of a degree requirement. WPI routinely publishes these reports on its website without editorial or peer review.

Creator

• Lenoir, Dana Bousquet
• Sebastian, Heather Simone
• Mukhanov, Sofia

Contributors

• Dunn, Raymond

Publisher

• Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Identifier

• E-project-042512-152032

Advisor

• Billiar, Kristen

Year

• 2012

Sponsor

• University of Massachusetts Medical Center

Date created

• 2012-04-25

Resource type

• Major Qualifying Project

Major

• Biomedical Engineering

Rights statement

• In Copyright