Patent ID: 8465545
Filing Date: 2013-06-18
Classification: A61B,A61F

Abstract:
1. A method of making an orthopedic repair by fixing a soft tissue graft to bone, comprising: creating a tunnel within a desired bone site, said tunnel extending through a first bone member and comprising a blind hole in a second bone member; placing a soft tissue graft on an implant; securing said implant within said blind hole, such that a plurality of ends of said soft tissue graft extend from said implant and substantially entirely through the tunnel in said first bone member; sliding a second implant, comprising a plurality of sheath members connected together at a distal end thereof so that the sheath members are expandable outwardly about a hinge and a cortical hook on a proximal end of one of said sheath members, along said soft tissue graft ends, with the sheath members being disposed between the soft tissue graft ends, into said tunnel in the first bone member, to a predetermined location wherein said cortical hook engages a cortical surface of said tunnel on said first bone member; tensioning said soft tissue graft ends; and expanding said second implant outwardly to compress the soft tissue graft ends against a wall defining said bone tunnel; wherein one of said sheath members comprises a snap post and another of said sheath members comprises a snap hole, said snap post and said snap hole being engaged with one another when said sheath members are in an initial unexpanded orientation, wherein the expanding step is initiated by disengaging the snap post from the snap hole.