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During t7-t11 fusion procedure, straight clamp was positioned on the spinous process of t7.Following successful registration, landmark check was performed by the surgeon to affirm accurate registration.Drill was used for pilot holes starting from patient left t7 down to left t11 followed by tap in the same direction.Trajectories were placed for pathway of each screw with some trajectories replaced due to difficulty with transverse processes.Screws were placed from left t11 up to left t7.When moving to instrument right t7, the surgeon performed additional landmark check with tap and drill on the anatomy as well as on the screws on the left side.Landmark check on the screws on the left side construct showed instrument was lateral in navigation in comparison to the placement of instrument in construct.Drill and tap were recalibrated.Inaccuracy remained with another landmark check after recalibration.The surgeon decided to continue with instrumentation on the right side using the free hand technique.Post-op scan demonstrated that left t7 screw, that was positioned with the navigation system, and the right t8 & t10 screws, that were positioned by free hand, were too lateral.Screws were readjusted and a third scan was performed for accuracy confirmation.No patient harm or adverse event was reported.The investigation found the actual screw trajectory was lateral compared to the virtual screw trajectory.Additionally, the position of the clamp teeth on the spinous process were examined from the scan.It was noticed that not all of the clamp teeth were fixated to the spinous process of t7.Thus, it may be assumed that a movement of the clamp during the procedure caused for the inaccurate placement of the screw in left t7.The surgeon further commented that this may have occurred due to the difficulties he encountered with the transverse processes of that patient, that may have led to bumping into the clamp.According to 21cfr 803.3, a screw that is not positioned in the pedicle and that needed to be removed and replaced is considered as "serious injury" and therefore needs to be reported.
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