CPC A61B 17/1707 (2013.01) [A61B 17/7233 (2013.01); A61B 2017/00039 (2013.01); A61B 2017/0011 (2013.01); A61B 2017/00526 (2013.01); A61B 2017/00876 (2013.01); A61B 2017/00929 (2013.01); A61B 2017/564 (2013.01)] | 20 Claims |
1. A method of targeting a distal locking hole of an intramedullary nail that is implanted within a bone, the method comprising:
producing, with the intramedullary nail, at least one of an electrical current and a magnetic field, wherein the intramedullary nail comprises:
a nail body formed from a first material that is biocompatible;
a second material that is supported by the nail body and different from the first material and produces the at least one of the electrical current and the magnetic field; and
an electrically insulative third material that is different from the first and second materials and supported by the nail body,
wherein the third material encapsulates at least a portion of the second material such that the third material surrounds the portion of the second material in a cross-sectional plane, the first material surrounds the third material in the cross-sectional plane, and the first and third materials extend between the distal locking hole and the portion of the second material along a radial direction that extends radially from a central axis the distal locking hole;
sensing the at least one of the electrical current and the magnetic field; and
detecting a location of the distal locking hole based on the sensed at least one of the electrical current and the magnetic field.
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