Modular guidewire

Abstract

A modular guidewire system includes at least one guidewire module having a solid polygonal shaped prism extending from a body of the guidewire module at a first end and a recess having a polygonal prism shape at a second end. The modular guidewire system also includes at least one guidewire tip module having a tip at a first end and connecting end at a second end, the connecting end including a solid polygonal shaped prism extending from a body of the guidewire tip module or a recess having a polygonal prism shape. A first guidewire module is attachable to a first guidewire tip module by inserting the solid polygonal shaped prism of the guidewire module into the polygonal prism shaped recess of the guidewire tip module, or inserting the solid polygonal shaped prism of the guidewire tip module into the polygonal prism shaped recess of the guidewire module.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A modular guidewire system comprising:
 at least one guidewire module, wherein each guidewire module has a solid polygonal shaped prism extending from a body of the guidewire module at a first end and a recess having a polygonal prism shape at a second end; and   at least one guidewire tip module, wherein each guidewire tip module has a tip at a first end and connecting end at a second end, wherein the connecting end comprises: (i) a solid polygonal shaped prism extending from a body of the guidewire tip module, or (ii) a recess having a polygonal prism shape;   wherein a first guidewire module is configured to be attachable to a first guidewire tip module by: (i) inserting the solid polygonal shaped prism of the first guidewire module into the polygonal prism shaped recess of the first guidewire tip module, or (ii) inserting the solid polygonal shaped prism of the first guidewire tip module into the polygonal prism shaped recess of the first guidewire module, to form a guidewire; and   wherein the solid polygonal shaped prism and the polygonal shaped recess are configured to cooperate to prevent rotation and allow longitudinal movement between the first guidewire module and first guidewire tip module.   
     
     
         2 . The modular guidewire system of  claim 1 , wherein the tip is selected from a group consisting of: a straight guidewire tip, a ball guidewire tip, a bent guidewire tip, a J-curved guidewire tip, a screw guidewire tip, a hooked guidewire tip, a trocar guidewire tip, a drill guidewire tip, a magnetic guidewire tip, and an adhesive guidewire tip. 
     
     
         3 . The modular guidewire system of  claim 1 , further comprising a sleeve configured to cover connecting ends of the first guidewire module and first guidewire tip module when connected. 
     
     
         4 . The modular guidewire system of  claim 3 , wherein the sleeve is threadably coupled to the guidewire. 
     
     
         5 . The modular guidewire system of  claim 1 , wherein the guidewire is configured to be used through manual manipulation by a user. 
     
     
         6 . The modular guidewire system of  claim 1 , wherein the guidewire is configured to be used with a drill attachment. 
     
     
         7 . The modular guidewire system of  claim 1 , further comprising a second guidewire module coupled to the first guidewire module, at an end of the first guidewire module opposite from the guidewire tip module. 
     
     
         8 . The modular guidewire system of  claim 7 , further comprising a second guidewire tip module coupled to the second guidewire module, at an end of the second guidewire module opposite from the first guidewire module. 
     
     
         9 . The modular guidewire system of  claim 1 , further comprising a second guidewire tip module coupled to the first guidewire module, at an end of the first guidewire module opposite from the first guidewire tip module. 
     
     
         10 . The modular guidewire system of  claim 1 , comprising at least three guidewire modules. 
     
     
         11 . The modular guidewire system of  claim 10 , further comprising two guidewire tip modules. 
     
     
         12 . The modular guidewire system of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one guidewire module and the at least one guidewire tip module are configured to be rigidly locked together for advancement into bone tissue. 
     
     
         13 . The modular guidewire system of  claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of sleeves. 
     
     
         14 . A method for building a guidewire of customizable length, the method comprising:
 selecting at least one guidewire module, wherein each guidewire module has a solid polygonal shaped prism extending from a body of the guidewire module at a first end and a recess having a polygonal prism shape at a second end;   selecting at least one guidewire tip module, wherein each guidewire tip module has a tip at a first end and connecting end at a second end, wherein the connecting end comprises: (i) a solid polygonal shaped prism extending from a body of the guidewire tip module, or (ii) a recess having a polygonal prism shape;   attaching a first guidewire module to a first guidewire tip module by: (i) inserting the solid polygonal shaped prism of the first guidewire module into the polygonal prism shaped recess of the first guidewire tip module, or (ii) inserting the solid polygonal shaped prism of the first guidewire tip module into the polygonal prism shaped recess of the first guidewire module, to form a guidewire, such that the solid polygonal shaped prism and the polygonal prism shaped recess cooperate to prevent rotation and allow longitudinal movement between the first guidewire module and first guidewire tip module.   
     
     
         15 . The method for building a guidewire of customizable length of  claim 14 , further comprising covering the connecting ends of the first guidewire module and first guidewire tip module with a sleeve. 
     
     
         16 . The method for building a guidewire of customizable length of  claim 15 , wherein the sleeve is threadably coupled to the guidewire. 
     
     
         17 . The method for building the guidewire of customizable length of  claim 14 , further comprising selecting at least two guidewire modules and attaching the first guidewire module to a second guidewire module. 
     
     
         18 . The method for building the guidewire of customizable length of  claim 14 , wherein selecting at least one guidewire module comprises selecting from a kit of guidewire modules comprising at least two guidewire modules. 
     
     
         19 . The method for building the guidewire of customizable length of  claim 14 , wherein selecting at least one guidewire tip module comprises selecting from a kit of guidewire modules comprising at least two guidewire tip modules. 
     
     
         20 . The method for building the guidewire of customizable length of  claim 14 , wherein the tip is a straight guidewire tip, a ball guidewire tip, a bent guidewire tip, a J-curved guidewire tip, a screw guidewire tip, a hooked guidewire tip, a trocar guidewire tip, a drill guidewire tip, a magnetic guidewire tip, or an adhesive guidewire tip.