Patient-specific mill guide

Abstract

An orthopedic guide for preparing a particular patient's bone to receive a prosthesis using a milling tool with a rotating burr comprises a platform having a top surface and a bottom surface adapted to face the patient's bone. The platform defines an elongate milling track that extends through the platform from the top surface to the bottom surface of the platform, the milling track being sized and shaped so as to be adapted to guide the milling tool across the patient's bone with the burr of the milling tool rotating beneath the bottom surface of the platform to be adapted to remove a first bone portion from the patient's bone. A plurality of legs are coupled to the platform and each comprise a referencing end that is contour-matching fabricated as a function of the patient's bone data to be adapted to abut the patient's bone, the referencing ends of the plurality of legs adapted to cooperate to locate the orthopedic guide at a single predetermined location of the patient's bone.

1 . A method for preparing a particular patient's bone to receive a prosthesis having an articulating surface and a bone-engaging surface, the method comprising the steps of:
 providing a digital model of the bone;   identifying a portion of the bone to be removed to receive the prosthesis;   providing a patient-specific guide;   using the patient-specific guide to remove the identified portion of the bone, thereby forming a prepared surface of the bone; and   inlaying the prosthesis into the bone by positioning the bone-engaging surface of the prosthesis against the prepared surface of the bone, the articulating surface of the prosthesis transitioning smoothly into a remaining surface of the bone located adjacent to the prepared surface of the bone.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising the step of providing a digital model of the prosthesis. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the identifying step comprises overlaying the digital model of the prosthesis onto the digital model of the bone. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the using step comprises at least one of milling and cutting the bone. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the inlaying step comprises aligning the articulating surface of the prosthesis and the remaining surface of the bone in substantially the same plane. 
     
     
         6 . A method for preparing a particular patient's bone to receive a prosthesis, the method comprising the steps of:
 providing a digital model of the bone;   providing a digital model of the prosthesis, the digital model of the prosthesis having a bone-contacting surface with a predetermined shape;   identifying a portion of the bone to be removed to receive the bone-contacting surface of the prosthesis;   providing a patient-specific guide to remove the identified portion of the bone; and   manufacturing the prosthesis to fill at least the removed portion of the bone.   
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the removed portion of the bone has a three-dimensional geometry, the manufacturing step comprising manufacturing the prosthesis to replicate the three-dimensional geometry of the removed portion of the bone. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the manufacturing step comprises at least one of a rapid prototyping process and a casting process. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the manufacturing step comprises removing material from a bulk construct to form an articulating surface of the prosthesis while retaining a bone-engaging surface of the bulk construct. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the patient-specific guide is contoured to rest against a predetermined location of the bone.