Prosthetic acetabular cup impaction plate

1. A prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system comprising a left and a right side acetabular cup each having an anatomically shaped rim; and

an impaction plate having an annular cup engaging surface comprising an annular array of first shape portions adapted to substantially complement portions of the anatomical shape of the right side acetabular cup rim, which first shape portions are intersected by an annular array of second shape portions adapted to substantially complement portions of the natural shape of the left side acetabular cup rim.

2. The prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system claimed in claim 1 in which the impaction plate annular array of first shape portions substantially complement portions of the anatomical shape of the right side acetabular cup rim arranged at approximately 45 degrees in a first direction from a natural position on a proximal/distal axis of a right side hip joint, and in which the annular array of second shape portions substantially complement portions of the anatomical shape of the left side acetabular cup arranged at approximately 45 degrees in the opposite direction from a natural position on a proximal/distal axis of a left side hip joint.

3. The prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system as claimed in claim 2 in which the impaction plate has a cup rim engaging surface comprising in order, a first ilium portion, a second pubis portion, a first inter ilium/ischium portion, a second ischium portion, a first ischium portion, a second inter ilium/ischium portion, a first pubis portion and a second ilium portion shaped to engage portions of both the rims of the left and right side acetabular cups.

4. The prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system as claimed in claim 1 in which the impaction plate comprises an annular acetabular cup rim engaging wall extending parallel to a lengthwise axis thereof, and in which the acetabular cup rim engaging surface comprises an upper surface of said cup engaging wall.

5. The prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system as set forth in claim 1 wherein the impaction plate rim has a plurality of first contour portions engagable with the right acetabular cup and a plurality of second contour portions engageable with the left acetabular cup, the first and second contour portions alternating around a circumference of the impaction plate.

6. The prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system as set forth in claim 5 wherein there are four (4) first contour portions and four (4) second contour portions.

7. The prosthetic acetabular cup impaction system as set forth in claim 6 wherein the four first and second rim contour portions each encompass 45° of the 360° circumference of the impaction plate.

8. A prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system comprising:

a left and right acetabular cup each having an outer member including an outer surface, said outer member having a part-spherical inner bearing surface, the outer member extending about a polar axis terminating in a 360 degree circumferential distal rim surrounding the opening of the acetabulum, the rim having a generally inferiorly facing edge surface, the polar axis is perpendicular to a plane containing the rim of the acetabulum, the generally inferiorly facing edge surface of the rim of the outer member having a contour continuously curved in the generally inferior-superior direction around the entire circumference of the rim with the generally inferiorly facing edge surface moving toward and away from the plane of the acetabular rim two times such that a portion of the generally inferiorly facing edge surface of the rim to be located between the ischium and the pubis extends further towards a polar region of the bearing surface where the polar axis intersects the bearing surface than a contour portion of the generally inferiorly facing edge surface of the rim to be implanted between the pubis and the ilium and a generally inferiorly facing edge surface contour portion to be implanted between the ischium and the ilium and a contour portion of the generally inferiorly facing edge surface of the rim to be implanted between the pubis and the ilium extends distally further from the polar region than the contour of the generally inferiorly facing edge surface of the rim between the ischium and the ilium, wherein the contours of the outer edge of the rim to be implanted at the ischium and the ilium are closer to the polar region than the remainder of the rim, the contour portions of the right and left cup being circumferentially offset from one another;

an impactor plate comprising a rim having surface portions adapted to engage the offset contour portions of the generally inferiorly facing edge surface of the rim of both the right and left acetabular cups.

9. The prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system as claimed in claim 8 in which the impactor plate rim offset contour portions have first shaped portions substantially complementary portions of the shape of the right acetabular cup rim, the first shaped portions arranged at approximately 45 degrees in a first direction from a natural position on a proximal/distal axis of a right side hip joint, and the impaction plate rim has second contour portions substantially complementary to contour portions of the shape of the left acetabular cup rim arranged at approximately 45 degrees in a second opposite direction from a natural position on a proximal/distal axis of a left side acetabulum.

10. The prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system as claimed in claim 9 in which the impactor plate cup engaging rim contour portions comprises, in order, a first ilium portion, a second pubis portion, a first inter ilium/ischium portion, a second ischium portion, a first ischium portion, a second inter ilium/ischium portion, a first pubis portion and a second ilium portion.

11. The prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system as claimed in claim 8 in which the impaction plate comprises an annular cup engaging wall extending parallel to a lengthwise axis thereof, and in which said cup engaging rim contour portions comprises an upper surface of said cup engaging wall.

12. The prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system as set forth in claim 8 wherein the impaction plate rim has a plurality of first offset contour portions engagable with the right acetabular cup and a plurality of second offset contour portions engageable with the left acetabular cup, the first and second contour portions alternating around a circumference of the impaction plate.

13. The prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system as set forth in claim 12 wherein there are four (4) first contour portions and four (4) second contour portions.

14. The prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system as set forth in claim 13 wherein the four first and second offset contour portions each encompass 45° of the 360° circumference of the impaction plate.

15. The prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system as claimed in claim 14 in which the cup engaging rim contour portion comprises, in order, a first ilium portion, a second pubis portion, a first inter ilium/ischium portion, a second ischium portion, a first ischium portion, a second inter ilium/ischium portion, a first pubis portion and a second ilium portion.

16. The prosthetic acetabular cup implantation system as claimed in claim 15 in which the impaction plate comprises an annular cup engaging wall extending parallel to a lengthwise axis thereof, and in which said cup engaging rim contour portions comprises an upper surface of said cup engaging wall.