TURKISH ENGINEERS DEVELOP OCTOPOD EXTERNAL FIXATOR
IZMIR - The Octopod external fixator developed by Turkish engineers in the United States has marked a new era in orthopedics by shortening treatment and requiring less surgical intervention.
The medical device is designed to treat bone fractures and deformities as well as bone defects, dwarfism, polio, rachitism and Blount's disease.
In an exclusive interview with the A.A, Tamer Isin, president of the USA-based Imed Surgical which developed the device, said, "the third generation fixator is a medical device designed to treat bone fractures and deformities both in adults and children."
He said that the Adam Frame with Paley's Method was developed with a new software technology and a unique design and X-ray film could be uploaded to the web-based program enabling orthopedists to perform the necessary calculations for bone correction.
"The device can work with or without a computer aided solution (CAS) software," he said.
"The fixator shortens treatment considerably and requires less surgical intervention. Accordingly, orthopedists around the world have begun preferring the fixator. A group of leading Italian orthopedists came to Turkey to receive training about the fixator in March. Another group of leading orthopedists from the United Kingdom will come to Turkey to attend the training programs in June," he said.
Isin said that they inspired from the octagonal supporting system used by Architect Sinan of the Ottoman Empire through eight pillars of the Mosque Selimiye in the northwestern province of Edirne.
"The device consists of 4 main vertical struts between 2 rings and 4 assistant diagonal struts. This 3rd Generation Circular External Fixator thus contains 8 combined mobile struts from which it derives its octopod name. With the octopod method the device can reach a wider correction range," he added.
