Patent ID: 7875062

Claim:
A bone plating system, comprising: a bone plate including at least one hole therethrough between an upper surface and a lower surface of said bone plate to receive an anchor for engaging said bone plate to a bony segment, said bone plate including at least one receptacle adjacent to said first hole; and a retaining element including a distal shank portion engaging said bone plate in said receptacle when rotated in a first rotational direction about a rotational center of said retaining element, said retaining element including a proximal head portion extending about said shank portion, said head portion including a top surface opposite said distal shank portion positioned adjacent said upper surface of said bone plate, wherein when viewed in a direction looking along said rotational center toward said top surface said head portion includes: an outer perimeter extending about said rotational center of said retaining element, said outer perimeter including a first perimeter portion visible from said direction that extends along an arc defined by a first radius extending through said rotational center, said outer perimeter further including a camming portion extending from said first perimeter portion that is formed by an arcuate surface that includes a circumferential taper visible from said direction that tapers toward the rotational center in the first rotational direction, at least one of said camming portion and said first perimeter portion is positionable relative to said plate when said retaining element is rotated in the first rotational direction to contact said anchor in said at least one hole of said bone plate, and a relief along said outer perimeter that extends from said camming portion inwardly toward said rotational center, said retaining element being positionable relative to said bone plate in an open position wherein said relief is configured to permit the anchor to be positioned into said at least one hole from said upper surface of said bone plate, said retaining element being rotatable relative to said bone plate in said first rotational direction from said open position to contact at least one of said camming portion and said first perimeter portion with a head of said anchor in said hole of said bone plate; wherein said retaining element includes a first axis extending through said rotational center and bisecting said relief and a second axis orthogonal to said first axis and orthogonal to said rotational center, wherein said arcuate surface of said camming portion circumferentially tapers on said outer perimeter at least from said second axis to said relief in said first rotational direction so that a radius of said outer perimeter where said camming portion joins said relief is less than said first radius of said first perimeter portion extending from said camming portion.