Paragon 28 Launches Paratrooper Plantar Plate System

Paragon 28 Inc. has officially unveiled its Paratrooper Plantar Plate Repair System, a product designed to provide a dorsal or plantar surgical approach to the plantar plate repair procedure using a single, all-inclusive kit. 

The Paratrooper Plantar Plate Repair System offers surgeons the first all-suture anchor implant designed specifically for plantar plate repair that can be fixed into bone or soft tissue. The system is designed for simplicity—surgeons perform a single pass of the suture through the plantar plate deploying an anchor and then tension and position the toe in the desired position. Paragon 28 has eliminated the need for complex inserters and instead leveraged a streamlined curved needle to pass the implant in tight spaces.

“The Paratrooper Plantar Plate Repair System is a low-profile, all-suture implant technique to give us new options for plantar plate repair and forefoot deformities,” said Robert Thompson, M.D., a Paratrooper design surgeon. “The ability to gain more purchase in attenuated tissues combined with the ability to independently tension the construct in different planes allows for patient-specific deformity correction. It offers new approaches for historically challenging forefoot pathologies.”
 
When the Paratrooper suture implant is inserted and tensioned, the implanted suture “sock” contracts and forms a low profile, flat anchor that prevents the implant from pulling out of the site—limiting pull through is critical in the attenuated tissues surgeon must frequently address with this repair. The implant provides for independent tensioning to assist in valgus and varus correction and provides for self-retention of suture prior to knotting, allowing for partial tensioning of one implant and then the other to achieve precise correction. Tension may be reapproximated throughout the procedure prior to knotting.
 
Instrumentation is provided to directly address plantar plate deficiency and is included within one kit to facilitate exposure, drilling, and implant placement within a small, limited vascularization environment.  An optional non-sterile instrument kit is available to streamline exposure and capture of the plate from either a dorsal or plantar approach. Drill tunnels are created using 1.4 mm K-wires to preserve as much bone as possible in an area of limited bone stock and limit cut out of suture through the bone tunnel.
  
“Repair of the plantar plate has historically been one of the more challenging pathologies within the hammertoe sub-segment. We are thrilled to have developed an all suture-based, low profile and versatile implant capable of treating a variety of plantar plate conditions,” noted Paragon 28 CEO Albert DaCosta. “The Paratrooper Plantar Plate system adds to our portfolio of soft tissue products and the Hammertoe segment remains a strategic focus for the company as it is one of the fastest-growing markets, with opportunities for significant improvements in patient outcomes.”
 
The addition of the Paratrooper Plantar Plate System bolsters Paragon 28’s forefoot solutions product offering, which includes the TenoTac Soft Tissue Fixation System, HammerTube Hammertoe System, Mini-Monster Screw System, and JAWS Staple System. With this comprehensive portfolio, Paragon 28 provides its customers forefoot solutions to address flexible and rigid contractures of the lesser toes.
 
Paragon 28 Inc. was established in 2010 to address the unmet and under-served needs of the foot and ankle community. From the onset, Paragon 28 has worked to re-invent the space of foot and ankle surgery.