Patent ID: 7527639

Claim:
A fracture fixation system, comprising: a) a substantially rigid plate having a plurality of holes adapted to individually receive bone supports therein, said holes having an upper portion and a lower portion, said upper portion having a first internal thread, and said lower portion having a radius of curvature; b) a plurality of bone supports each having a head and a shaft, said shaft sized to be received through said holes, and said head having a lower surface with substantially a same radius of curvature as said lower portion of said holes and said head including two sets of pin slots, each set of pin slots defining a diameter of said head, and said diameters being transverse to each other; c) a plurality of set screws each having a body including a second thread rotationally engageable with said first thread, a lower ball portion sized to be received in said socket of one of said plurality of bone supports such that each said set screw and its respective bone support are adapted to articulate relative to each other by movement of said socket portion about said ball portion, and a proximal rotational engagement means for permitting a rotational force to be applied to said set screw; d) two pins extending through said ball portion of said set screw, each said pin permitted to rotate through one of said set of pin slots about two transverse axes, wherein when said bone supports are provided into respective holes, each said bone support may be positioned at a plurality of angles relative to an axis normal to a lower surface of a portion of said plate surrounding a respective hole, and once so positioned, respective set screws when threaded into said upper portions of said holes fix said bone supports at their respective angles.