Patent Application
20060242765
The present disclosure relates to accessories that attach to surgical tables to support portions of patients during surgery. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to accessory frames that attach to surgical tables and that are configured for supporting upper bodies of patients during surgery, such as, for example, spinal surgery.
Standard surgical tables, also referred to as operating tables or operating room (O.R.) tables, typically have pivotable patient support sections that are moved by actuators, such as electric linear actuators or hydraulic actuators, to place a patient in a desired position. The patient support sections of these standard tables usually have metal frames and the tables oftentimes further include other metal elements which interfere with the ability to obtain desired x-ray images or fluoroscopic images of a patient during surgery. During some surgeries, such as orthopedic surgery, and particularly, spinal surgery, it is fairly important for x-ray images and/or fluoroscopic images to be taken of a patient due to the implantation of screws, rods, replacement discs, and the like, in very close proximity to critical nerves including the spinal cord. As a result, standard surgical tables are not suitable for some surgeries.
Specialized orthopedic surgical tables have been developed for orthopedic surgery and a subset of these specialized orthopedic surgical tables, such as, for example, the “Jackson” table and the “Andrews” table, have been designed specifically for spinal surgery. Examples of the “Jackson” table may be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,088,706; 5,131,106; 5,613,254; and 6,260,220. An example of the “Andrews” table may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,444,882. The various types of Jackson tables and the Andrews table are self-standing surgical tables which are very expensive, but which are only used for a small percentage of the surgeries that may be performed in a hospital.
Attempts have been made in the past to design substantially radiolucent table extensions that attach to standard surgical tables to support a patient during spinal surgery or other surgical procedures during which x-ray or fluoroscopic images are to be taken of the patient's upper body. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,995,067; 5,758,374; 6,003,174; 6,584,630; and 6,813,788. Each of the devices in the patents just listed include a table top or panel or similar such structure underlying the patient. In some surgical procedures in which a patient is in a prone position, such as some spinal surgery procedures, it is desirable for the patient's abdomen to hang downwardly without obstruction so as not to be supported by an underlying table surface. Accordingly, table extensions having such table tops or panels may not be suitable for some spinal surgery procedures. In addition, many of the known table extensions connect to the associated surgical table with a fixed connection that does not permit the extension to pivot relative to the surgical table in a manner that would permit flexure of a patient by a sufficient amount to place the lumbar region of the patient's spine in a more lordotic (i.e., more arched) or more kyphotic (i.e., flattened or hunched) position than when the patient is simply lying in a flat, prone position with the lumbar region of the patient's spine in its naturally arched position.
The present invention comprises an accessory or accessory system that is used with a surgical table, as well as a method of using such an accessory or accessory system, and that has one or more of the features listed in the appended claims, or one or more of following features or combinations thereof, which alone or in any combination may comprise patentable subject matter:
An accessory for attachment to a surgical table to support an upper body of a patient during surgery may comprise a pair of spaced radiolucent frame members to which patient support devices may be coupleable. The accessory may further have a coupler to freely pivotably couple the pair of spaced radiolucent frame members to the surgical table such that the pair of spaced radiolucent frame members extend away from the surgical table and are able to articulate relative to the surgical table in response to portions of the surgical table being moved. The pair of spaced radiolucent frame members may be configured and arranged such that the upper body of the patient may be supportable thereabove and at least a portion of the legs of the patient may be supportable by the surgical table during surgery. The spaced radiolucent frame members may be substantially parallel.
The pivotable coupling between the surgical table and the radiolucent frame members may allow an associated patient's spine to be made more lordotic or more kyphotic before, during, or after surgery by simply tilting or articulating the table section to which the radiolucent frame members are coupled. Such movement of the surgical table may be accomplished using one or more of the powered actuators of the surgical table, for example. The patient support devices which may be coupled to the pair of radiolucent frame members include head supports, chest supports, hip supports, and arm boards, just to name a few. In some uses of the accessory, there are no panels or table sections which extend between the radiolucent frame members beneath the patient's abdomen, thereby allowing the patient's abdomen to hang downwardly without obstruction. Panels or sections which may attach to the radiolucent section and which may support mattress pads, for example, are contemplated by this disclosure and may be attached at any desired position along the radiolucent frame members, including positions beneath a patient's abdomen.
The coupler between the radiolucent frame members and the surgical table may comprise at least one pivot shaft that extends generally horizontally from at least one of the frame members. The coupler may further comprise at least one clamp that is coupleable to the surgical table and that has a shaft support to support the shaft for pivoting movement about a generally horizontal axis. The clamp may comprise a block with a channel sized to receive an accessory rail of the surgical table. The shaft support may comprise a hook extending from the block and the hook may have a curved surface on which the at least one pivot shaft rests. During articulation of the radiolucent frame members relative to the surgical table, the shaft may rotatively slide on the curved surface of the hook.
The clamp may include a latch that is movable between a first position preventing the pivot shaft from being removed from the clamp and a second position allowing removal of the pivot shaft from the clamp. Additionally or alternatively, the clamp may have a boss that extends from the shaft support and the coupler may further comprise a collar mounted on the pivot shaft and having a recess. The collar may be movable along the shaft between a first position in which the boss is received in the recess to prevent the pivot shaft from being removed from the clamp and a second position in which the boss is situated outside the recess. The coupler may comprise a threaded screw coupled to the collar and movable to tighten against the pivot shaft to retain the collar in place on the pivot shaft. The accessory may have a retainer adjacent an end of the pivot shaft to prevent the collar from being removed from the pivot shaft.
The accessory may further comprise a connector block fastened to an end region of at least one of the frame members and the pivot shaft may be fastened to the connector block. The connector block may have a channel in which the end region of the at least one frame member is received and a bore in which a portion of the pivot shaft is received. The channel may extend in perpendicular relation to the bore. The accessory may also have a radiolucent cross frame member extending between the pair of spaced radiolucent frame members. The cross frame member may also be fastened to the connector block. The connector block may have another channel in which an end region of the cross frame member is received.
Each of the radiolucent frame members may comprise a carbon fiber tube and a filler material within the tube. The filler material may comprise a polyurethane foam material. Each of the radiolucent frame members may be generally quadrilateral in cross section. In some embodiments, the cross section of the radiolucent frame members may be about 1.25 inches (about 3.175 cm) in width and about 1.5 inches (about 3.81 cm) in height. In some embodiments, the radiolucent frame members of the accessory are spaced apart by about 14 inches (about 35.56 cm) as measured between the inside surfaces of the frame members (or, about 17.5 inches (about 44.45 cm) as measured between the outside surfaces of the frame members). In such embodiments having the frame members with this size and spacing, any device which would otherwise be attachable to a Jackson table, may be attached to the frame members of such embodiments.
Further according to this disclosure, an accessory that is attachable to a surgical table to support a patient during surgery and detachable from the surgical table for storage is provided. Such a storable accessory may comprise a frame having a pair of substantially parallel, elongated radiolucent frame members to which patient support devices may be coupleable. The frame may be configured such that the upper body of the patient is supportable thereabove during surgery. The accessory may further have a base and a support structure having a lower end region coupled to the base and extending upwardly therefrom. A first end of the frame may be coupled to an upper end region of the support structure. The frame may be pivotable relative to the support structure between a storage position in which a second end of the frame is supported on the base and a use position in which the second end of the frame is spaced from the base.
The base may include a base frame and a pair of hooks extending from the base frame. The frame may have a pair of pivot shafts extending outwardly relative to the elongated radiolucent frame members at the second end of the frame. The pair of pivot shafts may rest on the hooks when the frame is in the storage position. The base frame may be generally U-shaped and the hooks may extend from ends of the U-shaped base frame.
The accessory may further have a pair of rail clamps that are coupleable to the surgical table. The pair of pivot shafts may be coupleable to the rail clamps when the frame is in the use position. The frame may be coupled to the support structure by a first multi-axis joint and the support structure may be coupled to the base by a second multi-axis joint. The first and second multi-axis joints may permit the frame to pivot relative to the surgical table about an axis that extends laterally relative to the surgical table. In addition, the first and second multi-axis joints may permit the frame to pivot with the surgical table about an axis that extends longitudinally relative to the surgical table. The pivoting of the frame about these laterally extending and longitudinally extending axes may occur as a result of operation of the actuators of the surgical table to tilt front-to-rear and/or to tilt side-to-side the section of the surgical table to which the frame is coupled.
The support structure to which the frame is coupled may be extendable and retractable to change an elevation of the first end of the frame relative to the base. The support structure may comprise a telescopic leg and a jack screw that is operable to extend and retract the telescopic leg. The accessory may further comprise a set of wheels coupled to the base. The wheels may be spaced from a floor when the base is in a normal use position, and the wheels may engage the floor when the base, the support structure, and the frame are tipped for transport. A handle may be coupled to the support structure and the handle may be grippable to tip the base, the support structure, and the frame for transport. The handle may comprise a horizontal bar having gripping portions on opposite sides of the support structure.
Also according to this disclosure, an accessory may comprise a frame, a base which is supportable on a floor during surgery, a support structure extending upwardly from the base, a first multi-axis joint coupling a lower region of the support structure to the base, and a second multi-axis joint coupling an upper region of the support structure to the frame. The first multi-axis joint may be configured to permit pivoting movement of the support structure relative to the base about a first plurality of axes and the second multi-axis joint may be configured to permit pivoting movement of the frame relative to the support structure about a second plurality of axes.
The first multi-axis joint may comprise a ball joint. An amount of torque to pivot the ball joint may be adjustable. In some embodiments, the torque to pivot the ball joint may be adjustable by clamping an O-ring against a ball of the ball joint. The ball joint may comprise a foot pedal that is movable to adjust the torque required to pivot the ball joint. The ball joint may comprise a main housing having a generally spherical surface on which the ball is supported, a housing cap, an O-ring situated between the main housing and the housing cap and in contact with the ball, and an adjustable clamping assembly to clamp the O-ring between the housing cap and the main housing. The clamping assembly may comprise a set of flexible washers situated on the housing cap, a cam coupled to the main housing, a follower coupled to the cam, and a member extending through bores of the set of flexible washers and coupled to the follower such that movement of the cam may result in movement of the follower which acts through the member to adjust an amount by which the set of flexible washers are squeezed thereby to adjust an amount of force with which the O-ring is forced against the ball by the housing cap.
The support structure which interconnects the base and frame may be elongated and define an axis. The ball joint may be restricted from pivoting about an axis that is substantially coincident with and/or parallel to the axis defined by the support structure. For example, the ball joint may comprise a ball, a main housing having a generally spherical surface on which the ball is supported, the main housing having at least one groove that is recessed relative to the generally spherical surface, and a shaft that extends through a bore formed in the ball, the shaft having opposite ends that project beyond the ball and that are received in the groove to restrict the pivoting of the ball about the axis that is substantially coincident with and/or parallel to the axis defined by the support structure. The ball may have an opening that intersects the bore and the support structure may have a lower segment that is received by the opening. The shaft extending through the bore of the ball may also couple the lower segment of the support structure to the ball.
The second multi-axis joint comprises a universal joint. The support structure may comprise a telescopic arm and a cantilevered member extending from an upper region of the telescopic arm. The universal joint may be coupled to the cantilevered member so as to be offset from the telescopic arm. The support structure may comprise a hand crank that is coupled to the cantilevered member and that is rotated in first and second directions to extend and retract, respectively, the telescopic arm. The universal joint may comprise a first yoke fixed to the cantilevered member, a second yoke coupled to the first yoke for pivoting movement about a pair of perpendicular axes, and a plate fixed to the second yoke.
The frame may comprise a cross member that spans between the pair of radiolucent frame members and that is coupled to the plate. The cross member coupled to the plate may be substantially straight or may be curved such that, during use of the accessory, a central region of the cross member which is coupled to the plate is situated at a higher elevation than end regions of the cross member to which the radiolucent frame members couple. Pulleys may be provided on the cross member for use with cervical traction equipment. A flexible cover may be provided to shield the universal joint. The flexible cover may have a first end secured to the cantilevered member and a second end secured to the plate. An angle indicator may be mounted to the cantilevered member. The angle indicator may provide a visual indication of the angle of inclination of the frame relative to horizontal.
A panel that may couple to the frame members of the frame of the accessory is also provided. Ends of the panel may be supported on respective ones of the pair of spaced frame members and such that the panel spans across a space defined between the frame members. At least one of the ends of the panel may have a notch through which at least a portion of one of the frame members is exposed. A first clamp may couple to the portion of one of the frame members exposed in the notch. The first clamp may have an accessory rail and a second clamp may couple to the accessory rail. A mattress pad may couple to the panel. The mattress pad may have a portion that overlies the notch and the first clamp when the mattress pad is coupled to the panel. A limb support, such as an arm support, may couple to the second clamp.
In one disclosed embodiment, the floor-supported base and the support structure are omitted and a strut extending to another portion of the surgical table is provided to support the frame relative to the surgical table. The strut may extend from the frame. Such an embodiment may be used, for example, with a surgical table having a first patient support section movable to a generally horizontal position and a second patient support section movable to a generally vertical position extending downwardly with respect to the first patient support section. A first coupler may couple the frame to the first patient support section of the surgical table for pivoting movement about an axis. A second coupler may couple the strut to the second patient support section of the surgical table such that powered articulation of the second patient support section relative to the first patient support section results in pivoting movement of the frame relative to the first patient support section.
The support strut may comprise a pair of radiolucent support struts. Each radiolucent support strut may extend beneath a respective one of the radiolucent frame members of the frame. As may be the case with frame members of the frame, the radiolucent struts may each comprise a carbon fiber tube and a filler material in an interior region of the carbon fiber tube. The filler material of the struts may comprise a polyurethane foam material.
A method of using the accessories and/or accessory systems disclosed herein may comprise attaching rails clamps to rails of a surgical table, moving a frame from a storage position to a use position having one end of the frame coupled to the clamps, and adjusting a height of a second end of the frame such that the frame freely pivots relative to the rail clamps. The method may further comprise tilting a section of the surgical table to which the frame is coupled by the rail clamps. The section of the surgical table may be tilted about an axis extending lengthwise of the surgical table or widthwise of the surgical table. Coupling the frame to the rail clamps may comprise inserting pivot shafts of the frame into hook portions of the rail clamps. Adjusting the height of the second end of the frame may comprise operating a jack screw of a support structure that supports one of the ends of the frame relative to a floor-supported base.
Additional features, which alone or in combination with any other feature(s), such as those listed above and those listed in the appended claims, may comprise patentable subject matter and will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments exemplifying the best mode of carrying out the embodiments as presently perceived.
The detailed description particularly refers to the accompanying figures in which:
An accessory 10 according to this disclosure has a substantially radiolucent frame 12, a floor-supported base 14, and a support structure 16 that extends upwardly from base 14 and that couples to a first end 18 of frame 12 as shown in
Frame 12 includes a pair of spaced radiolucent side frame members 24, a first cross member 26 at first end 18 of frame 12, and a second cross member 28 at second end 20 of frame 12 as shown in
A pair of first corner connectors 30 are formed integrally with cross member 26 and are configured to couple to one end of respective frame members 24. A pair of second corner connectors 32 are configured to couple to opposite ends of respective frame members 24 and to ends of cross member 28. Thus, frame 12 is substantially rectangular in its overall shape having frame members 24 oriented in parallel relation to each other.
Various patient support devices are coupleable to frame 12. For example, a head support device 34, a chest support device 36, and a hip support device 38 are coupleable to frame 12 as shown, for example, in
Base 14 includes a U-shaped base frame member 42 having a pair of side portions 44 and a rear portion 46. Frame member 42 is made of a metal tube that has a generally square cross section and that is bent to form rounded corner regions 48 at the junction between portions 44 and portion 46. Frame members 42 are not parallel in the illustrative example, but rather, angle slightly outwardly from the rear to the front of base 14 as shown, for example, in
Base 14 also has a set of resilient floor-engaging feet or pads 54 that are secured to the bottom of frame member 42 as shown in
Support structure 16 includes a telescopic leg 64, a first multi-axis joint 66 coupling a lower end of telescopic leg 64 to plate 52 of base 14 and a second multi-axis joint 68 coupling an upper end of telescopic leg 64 to cross member 26 of frame 12 as shown, for example, in
In the illustrative embodiment, joint 66 comprises a ball joint (referred to herein sometimes as “ball joint 66”) and joint 68 comprises a universal joint (referred to herein sometimes as “universal joint 68”). However, both joints 66, 68 may be ball joints or both joints 66, 68 may be universal joints in other embodiments. Any joint permitting pivoting about multiple pivot axes are intended to be within the scope of this disclosure and may be used as multi-axis joints 66, 68 in lieu of the illustrative ball joint 66 and universal joint 68.
Telescopic leg 64 includes an upper tube 86, a middle tube 88, and a lower tube 90, as shown, for example, in
Accessory 10 includes a set of anti-skid pads 110 and a pair of rail clamps 112 which may be hung on gripping portions 100 of handle 96, if desired, when accessory 10 is in the storage position as shown best in
In the illustrative example of
Frame 12 includes a pair of pivot shafts 136, one of which is shown best in
When frame 12 of accessory 10 is in the storage position, as shown in
After frame 12 is coupled to table 22, hand crank 94 may be rotated to extend and retract telescopic leg 64 as desired to change the elevation of first end 18 of frame 12 relative to base 14 and the powered actuators, such as hydraulic cylinders or linear actuators, of table 22 may be operated as desired via user inputs of control devices (not shown), such as a hand pendant, of table 22 to raise and lower pedestal 122, to tilt the patient support sections (e.g., section 116, 118 of table 22 of
Based on the foregoing, it will be appreciated that accessory 10 and table 22 may be placed in a variety of positions to support a patient in any number of positions at the option of the surgeon. For example, in
In
In
In each of
Joints 66, 68 are free floating multi-axis joints that are unconstrained from pivoting within their range of movements about respective axes 70, 74, 78, 82. In addition, the coupling between shafts 136 of frame 12 and rail clamps 112 attached to table 22 is also a free floating joint, albeit about a single axis 140. The free floating joints of accessory 10 allow frame 12 to simply follow the motion dictated by the powered movement of table 22, within the ranges of movement of these joints. In the illustrative embodiment, accessory 10 is configured to permit ±20 degrees of front to rear tilt of fame 12 and ±20 degrees of side to side tilt of fame 12. Accessory 10 and table 22 may be moved during surgery to any desired position, such as for example, moving between the upwardly flexed and downwardly flexed positions to make the spine more lordotic or more kyphotic to reduce or eliminate pinching of discs by the adjacent vertebrae.
As mentioned above, frame members 24 are radiolucent to permit x-ray images and fluoroscopic images to be taken during surgery. Patient support devices 34, 36, 38 are also substantially radiolucent to facilitate the taking of x-ray images and fluoroscopic images during surgery. Such images are often taken with a device having a C-arm that includes portions above and below a patient. Because base 14 of accessory 10 is separated from base 124 of table 22, there is a large unobstructed amount of floor space beneath frame 12 which enhances the positioning of imaging equipment, such as a C-arm, relative to a patient supported on accessory 10 and table 22. The imaging access afforded by accessory 10, when used in combination with a surgical table, is even more than that of a Jackson table which has one or more base frame members extending from one end of the Jackson table to the other in close proximity to the floor.
Referring now to
A collar 168 is mounted on shaft 136 and has first and second annular recesses 170, 172, shown best in
A screw 176 having a knob 178 coupled thereto is threaded through a threaded opening 180 in collar 168. After collar 168 has been moved to a position either having boss 158 received in recess 170 of collar as shown in
In addition to collars 168 which prevent shafts 136 from decoupling inadvertently from respective hook portions 138 of rail clamps 112, each rail clamp 112 has a latch 192 which is biased by a coil spring 194 into a locking position to retain the associated shaft 136 on hook portion 138 as shown in
Latch 192 has a finger tab portion 226 which is bent at approximately a right angle relative to vertical tab portion 198. Finger tab portion 226 of latch 192 is situated above hook portion 138 of rail clamp 112 and engages an upper surface thereof when latch 192 is in the locking position. Finger tab portion 226 extends laterally outwardly beyond vertical surface 164 of hook portion 138 by a slight amount which enables a user to place a finger beneath finger tab portion 226 to pull finger tab portion 226 upwardly thereby to pivot latch 192 about pin 200 from the locking position to a releasing position. As latch 192 moves from the locking position to the releasing position, spring 194 is further compressed between projection 218 and spring retainer 216.
After latch 192 is moved to the releasing position and after the associated collar 168 is slid on shaft 136 away from the respective rail clamp 112 so that neither of bosses 158, 162 are received in the associated recess 170, 172, frame 12 may be unhooked from rail clamps 112 such that shaft 136 is lifted up and off of shaft support surface 166. When frame 12 is being coupled to rail clamps 112, shaft 136 moves downwardly toward surface 166 and wipes against a cam edge 228 of latch 192 to pivot latch 192 out of the locking position toward the releasing position. Once shaft 136 clears cam edge 192, spring 194 automatically biases latch 192 back into the locking position to retain shaft on hook portion 138. Thus, in the illustrative embodiment, accessory 10 has redundant mechanisms to safely retain frame 12 on rail clamps 112, one mechanism being collar 168 and the other being latch 192. In other embodiments, one or the other of collar 168 and latch 192 may be omitted.
Each corner connector 32 has a bore 228, shown in
As shown in
Referring now to
A middle portion of pin 274 is situated in hub 270 and end regions of pin 274 are situated in apertures 276 of plate 92 on opposite sides of hub 270 to prevent universal joint 68 from rotating out of its desired orientation having axis 82 extending generally parallel with the long dimension of plate 92 and having axis 78 extending generally parallel with the short dimension of plate 92. Similarly, a middle portion of pin 286 is situated in hub 280 and end regions of pin 286 are situated in apertures 288 on opposite sides of hub 280 to prevent universal frame 12 from rotating out of its desired orientation having frame member 26 extending generally perpendicular to the long dimension of plate 92. Joint 68 includes a bellows 296, which is made of rubber or other similarly flexible material, to shield yokes 264, 266. A lower end of bellows 296 is fastened to plate 92 and an upper end of bellows 296 is fastened to plate 284.
Offset from joint 68 toward the rear of plate 92 is a crank handle housing 298 which extends upwardly from plate 92 as shown in
Referring now to
Joint 66 has an adjustable clamping assembly 322 which is movable to clamp O-ring 320 between housing cap 316 and main housing 310 by a varying amount which, in turn, squeezes O-ring 320 by a varying amount against ball 314 which, ultimately, adjusts the torque required to pivot ball 314 relative to housing 310. The upper surface of main housing 310 is slightly inclined such that, at the rear end of joint 66, which is to the left in
Clamping assembly 322 comprises a set of flexible washers 326 situated on the housing cap 316 in a pocket 328 formed therein. Assembly 322 also has a shaft 330 with a D-shaped middle region which serves as a cam (sometimes referred to herein as “cam 330”) and which is coupled to housing 310. Shaft 330 also has end portions that extend beyond opposite sides of housing 310 and foot pedals 332 are coupled to the ends of shaft 330 as shown, for example in
Assembly 322 also has a member 340 that extends through bores of the set of flexible washers 326 and that couple to follower 334. In the illustrative example, member 340 comprises a screw (sometimes referred to herein as “screw 340”) that extends loosely through an aperture 342 formed in housing cap 316 and that is threaded into a threaded aperture 344 formed in follower 334. The set of flexible washers 326 are maintained in a state of compression between the head of screw 340 and housing cap 316. Movement of foot pedal 332 in the direction of arrow 346, shown in
A lower end of tube 90 of telescopic leg 64 is received in an opening that extends generally vertically within ball 314. A shaft 346 extends through a bore formed in ball 314 and through apertures formed in the lower end of tube 90 thereby to couple tube 90 to ball 314. The bore in ball 314 in which shaft 346 is received intersects the opening in ball 314 in which the lower end of tube 90 is received. Main housing 310 has a pair of grooves 348 that are formed on opposite sides of ball 314 and that are recessed relative to generally spherical surface 312. End regions of shaft 346 project beyond ball 314 and are received in respective grooves 348 to prevent ball 314 and support structure 16 from pivoting relative to base 14 along an axis defined along the length of telescopic leg 64. However, ball 314 is free to rotate front to rear about shaft 346 and ball 314 is free to rotate side to side. It should be appreciated that ends of shaft 346 will move upwardly and downwardly within respective grooves 348 when ball 314 rotates side to side which, in turn, changes the angle of shaft 346 relative to horizontal thereby changing the angle of the axis about which ball rotates front to rear. The size of an opening 345 in housing cap 316 dictates how much telescopic leg 64 is able to rotate front to rear and side to side. Joint 66 has a flexible cover 347 which extends over housing 310 and cap 316 and which has a neck portion 349 abutting and surrounding lower tube 90 above opening 345. Cover 347 is made of rubber or other similarly flexible material. As telescopic leg 64 tilts relative to base 14, cover 347 flexes with leg 64.
Referring now to
Middle tube 88 is freely slidable on lower tube 90. A collar 368 is fastened to lower tube 90 just above joint 66. When accessory 10 is coupled to a surgical table 22 for use, a bottom edge 370 of middle tube 88 rests upon collar 368 such that extension and retraction of tube 88 relative to tube 86 results in a change in elevation of first end 18 of frame 12 relative to base 14. However, when accessory 10 is being moved into the storage position, tubes 86, 88 are manually lifted upwardly such that tube 88 separates from collar 368 and slides upwardly relative to tube 90.
As discussed above, patient support devices, such as head support device 34, chest support device 36, and hip support device 38 are coupleable to frame members 24 of frame 12. While it is within the scope of this disclosure for frame members 24 to be of any desired size, shape, and spacing, in the illustrative embodiment, frame members 24 are quadrilateral in cross section having a width of about 1.25 inches (about 3.175 cm) and a height of about 1.5 inches (about 3.81 cm). Furthermore, in the illustrative embodiment, frame members 24 are spaced apart by about 14 inches (about 35.56 cm) as measured between the inside surfaces of the frame members (or, about 17.5 inches (about 44.45 cm) as measured between the outside surfaces of the frame members). By having frame members of this size, shape, and spacing, any device which would otherwise be attachable to a Jackson table, may be attached to frame members 24 of accessory 10.
Frame 12 has a large open space between frame members 24 which allows the abdomen of a patient to hang downwardly in an unobstructed manner when the patient is supported by devices 34, 36, 38. However, if desired, other types of devices may be attached to frame 12 in lieu of, or in addition to, devices 34, 36, 38. For example, one or more panels 372 may be attached to frame members 24 and one or more mattress pads 374 may be coupled to top surfaces of panels 372 as shown in
Panels 372 each have a generally flat top plate 378 that spans across the space between frame members 24 of frame 12. Each panel 372 also has a set of channel members 380 extending downwardly from the ends of plate 378. Channel members 380 are sized to slip over frame members 24 with a minimal amount of clearance therebetween. Panels 372 further include integrated clamps 40 that are operable to grip frame members 24 to retain panels 372 in place on frame members 24. Clamps 40 of panels 372 are substantially the same as clamps 40 of devices 34, 36, 38 and so the same reference numeral is used.
The end region of each panel 372 has a notch 382 through which a portion of a respective frame member 24 is exposed when the associated panel 372 is coupled to frame members 24. Another clamp 40, similar to clamps 40 of devices 34, 36, 38 and panels 372 but having a short accessory rail 384, is coupleable to the portion of the frame member 24 exposed in any particular notch 382. An accessory rail clamp 386 is coupleable to the accessory rail 384. Accessory rail 384 has a cross section that is substantially the same as the cross sections of accessory rails 114 of table 22. Thus, any device configured to attach to accessory rails 114 of table 22 may also couple to the accessory rail 384 of the clamp 40 that is coupled to frame members 24 in notch 382. Of course, clamps 40 with accessory rails 384 may couple to frame members 24 at any point at which frame members 24 are exposed and need not necessarily be situated within notches 382 of panels 372. Panels similar to panels 372 but without notches 382 are also contemplated by this disclosure.
Illustratively, clamp 386 supports an arm board 388 via a series of rods 390 that extend between arm board 388 and clamp 386. However, other types of limb supports or other types of devices, may be coupled to clamp 386 in lieu of arm board 388. In the illustrative example, clamp 386 is substantially similar to the rail clamp shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,633,980 which is assigned to the same assignee as the present application and which is hereby incorporated by reference herein. Thus, a handle 392 is rotatable to substantially simultaneously lock one of rods 390 relative to clamp 386 and to lock clamp 386 on accessory rail 384. As shown in
Referring now to
In the illustrative example, clamps 112 of accessory 400 are coupled to accessory rails 114 of section 118 of table 22 and clamps 414 are coupled to accessory rails 114 of section 120, which is moved downwardly relative to section 118 into a generally vertical position. In other configurations, section 120 may be inclined from vertical by some amount when frame 12 is in its horizontal orientation. Rail clamps 414 are similar to rail clamps 112, but are configured to be perpendicular to accessory rails 114 when coupled thereto, rather than being parallel to accessory rails 114 as is the case with rail clamps 112. A pivot shaft 416 extends from each strut and are coupled to a hook portion 418 of each clamp 414 in substantially the same manner as pivot shafts 136 are coupled to hook portions 138 of clamps 112. Powered movement of section 120 relative to section 118 results in frame 12 pivoting upwardly or downwardly relative to clamps 112 and section 118. Sections 118, 116 of surgical table may be inclined about a lateral axis thereby to move accessory 400 and table 22 in to an upwardly flexed position or downwardly flexed position. In addition, sections 116, 118, 120 may be powered to tilt about a horizontal axis and frame 12 will tilt side to side with sections 116, 118, 120.
While illustrative accessory 10 has been described above as coupling to accessory rails 114 of surgical table 22 via pivot shafts 132 and rail clamps 112, in other embodiments frame 12 and/or frame members 24 may couple to surgical tables 22 with other mechanisms. The same can be said of accessory 400. Different surgical table manufacturers have different types of connectors for coupling removable table sections to other portions of the surgical table. Surgical tables may have, for example, posts, ports, sockets, spades, and the like, as coupling mechanisms. It is within the scope of this disclosure for accessory 10 or accessory 400 to have couplers that mate with the posts, ports, sockets, spades, etc., as the case may be, of an associated surgical table. It should further be appreciated that while, accessory 10 and accessory 400 have been described herein as being “accessories” that attach to surgical tables, it is within the scope of this disclosure for these devices or portions thereof, such as frame 12 and/or frame members 24, to be integrated with, and therefore, be considered part of a surgical table itself. That is, frame 12 and/or frame members 24, may serve as a surgical table section that attaches to one or more other surgical table sections by any suitable coupler, such as those discussed herein.
Referring now to
A first pulley 434 and a second pulley 436 are coupled to frame member 426 and are used for routing cables or ropes that are associated with surgical traction equipment (not shown), for example. A portion of pulley 434 is received in a slot 438 that is formed front-to-rear through frame member 426. Pulley 434 is supported relative to frame member 426 for rotation about a first axis 440 which is generally perpendicular to the direction of frame members 24 and pulley 436 is supported for rotation relative to frame member 426 about a second axis 442 which is generally parallel with the direction of frame members 24. A bail 444 extends over pulley 436 as shown in
Although certain illustrative embodiments have been described in detail above, variations and modifications exist within the scope and spirit of this disclosure as described and as defined in the following claims.
This application claims the benefit, under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e), of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Nos. 60/670,027, 60/670,040, and 60/670,041 all three of which were filed Apr. 11, 2005; and of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/720,598 which was filed Sep. 26, 2005. This application is also a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/229,759 which was filed Sep. 19, 2005 and which claimed the benefit, under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e), of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/626,627 which was filed Nov. 10, 2004. U.S. Provisional Application Nos. 60/670,027; 60/670,040; 60/670,041; 60/720,598 and U.S. application Ser. No. 11/229,759 are hereby expressly incorporated by reference herein.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60670027 | Apr 2005 | US | |
| 60720598 | Sep 2005 | US | |
| 60670041 | Apr 2005 | US | |
| 60670040 | Apr 2005 | US | |
| 60626627 | Nov 2004 | US | |
| 60670027 | Apr 2005 | US | |
| 60670041 | Apr 2005 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 11229759 | Sep 2005 | US |
| Child | 11402330 | Apr 2006 | US |
