A wireless temperature measurement guide rod for internal bone fixation surgery

Abstract

Heat generation is one of the major harming factors in the reaming process of the internal bone fixation surgery. In order to minimize the temperature rise of the bone during surgery, a reaming system with temperature sensation is developed to allow the real time tracking of the heat generation caused by rotational sliding friction. We have conducted experiments to calibrate and demonstrate the stability and sensitivity of the wireless transmitted temperature data. We have also analyzed the possible factors causing the temperature change of the bone cavity during surgery theoretically and performed experiments to validate these factors. An experiment was also conducted to demonstrate the sufficient penetrating power of the wireless temperature signals from a sensor inside a bone replicate.