EMET Education
Musculoskeletal
Elbow
Distal biceps rupture

3D model · Elbow

Distal Biceps Rupture 3D Model

Reproduce your patient's tear during the visit, retraction and lacertus included, and show in 3D the treatment you recommend. They leave with their model on their phone.

Customize the tear

Opens in your browser, no sign-up. For orthopedic surgeons, sports medicine physicians, physiatrists, emergency physicians, radiologists and primary care physicians.

The patient understandsTheir lesion, reproduced from their workup, on a model they handle themselves.
Reassured, ready to decideThey review the proposed treatment at home before giving consent.
Documented informationVisit saved and dated: a record of the information you provided.
In their language🇫🇷 🇬🇧 🇪🇸 🇷🇺

How it works

In the visit, in three steps

Structured information in a few minutes, which the patient can review at home.

1
Show

Open the model and walk through the anatomy: the biceps and its distal tendon, the radial tuberosity, the lacertus fibrosus, the brachialis, then the injury mechanism.
2
Reproduce

Set the tear from the exam and MRI: retraction to the millimeter, lacertus intact or torn. Then walk through the proposed treatment, nonoperative or surgical, step by step.
3
Share

Give the patient the QR code or an image: they find their own case, in their language.

Features

Explain in detail during the visit

Every setting updates the model live: you reproduce the lesions from your patient's imaging in front of them, then walk through the treatment you recommend.

The tear, in a few clicks

The “Replay the mechanism” button shows the injury, the “Pathology & lesions” panel what it leaves behind: the torn tendon, its retraction, the lacertus. Measurements read from the model appear under the settings.

The tear and its retraction, to the millimeter

The tendon pulls off the radial tuberosity and retracts: frayed, reddened end, bunched-up biceps belly, bare footprint shown in red on the tuberosity. The gauge sets the retraction in true millimeters.

Model panel: “Ruptured distal tendon” on, 30 mm retraction. — **Tendon** · intact

Front view of the elbow crease: the distal biceps tendon attached to the radial tuberosity. — **Tendon** · intact

The treatment, step by step

Two treatments, played step by step: nonoperative, where the tendon scars onto the brachialis, or surgical, reattachment to the tuberosity. Both end with range of motion: flexion-extension, then pronation-supination.

Nonoperative treatment

The tendon end scars onto the anterior brachialis: strength drops by about 30% in flexion and 40% in supination, range of motion is preserved.

Nonoperative treatment, step 2: the tendon end scars onto the anterior brachialis. — 2Scarring

Nonoperative treatment, last step: side view, the elbow flexes and extends normally. — 3Motion preserved

Repair with suture anchors

Tendon whipstitched while still retracted, brought back to the tuberosity without tension, two anchors at the top and bottom of the footprint, sutures tied over the tendon.

Repair, step 1: two sutures whipstitched into the still-retracted tendon. — 1Whipstitch

Repair, step 2: the tendon brought back to the tuberosity without tension. — 2Tendon retrieved

Repair, step 3: two anchors inserted at the top and bottom of the footprint. — 3Anchors placed

Repair, step 4: the anchor sutures pass through the tendon and are tied over it. — 4Tendon fixed

Repair, step 5: elbow extended, the reattached tendon follows the radius again. — 5Result

Repair technique, your choice

Suture anchors, transosseous sutures, interference screw or cortical button: only tuberosity preparation and fixation change, the steps stay the same.

Model panel: “Reattachment technique” list. — **Transosseous sutures**

Tendon seated in a trough in the tuberosity, sutures passed through three drill holes and tied over the bone. — **Transosseous sutures**

Surgical risks

Once the tendon is reattached, three complications can be shown: posterior interosseous nerve palsy, heterotopic ossification that limits pronation-supination, re-rupture.

Model panel: “Course & risks” section, posterior interosseous nerve palsy on. — **Posterior interosseous nerve**

Radial nerve and its deep branch: red halo on the posterior interosseous nerve at the radial neck. — **Posterior interosseous nerve**

After the visit

The patient leaves with their 3D model

They scan the QR code: the model, their findings and the proposed treatment follow them on their phone, in their language.

The model, exactly as you set it

At the end of the visit, the Consultation panel shows the anatomical findings, the proposed treatment and a QR code. The patient scans it and finds the model on their phone exactly as you set it, in their language.

Their lesions, and the proposed treatment to replay step by step.
Their anatomical findings and the explanatory card.
No identifying data in the link.

Patient view on a phone: the tendon reattached with anchors, and the “The proposed treatment” panel open, with the “Replay” button. — What the patient sees after scanning the QR code

Every structure explains itself on tap

Tap the torn tendon, the tuberosity, the lacertus, an anchor or the cortical button: its name and an explanation appear.

One explanation per structure: bones, tendon, lacertus, brachialis, nerves, hardware.
Written for the patient, in their language.
They can reread it on their own, on the tablet or at home.

Explanation bubble shown after tapping the end of the torn tendon, above the elbow crease. — “What is this?” on tap

They can replay the treatment step by step

From “The proposed treatment,” the patient replays the procedure: each step plays at their own pace, with its explanation, as often as they like.

Patient view on a phone: the repair replayed step by step. — “Replay”: the procedure, step by step

Try it with your next case: the model opens in your browser, nothing to install.

Customize the tear

Patient information

Quality information, documented

Only 12% of U.S. adults have proficient health literacy (National Assessment of Adult Literacy). A patient who sees their own lesions and the proposed procedure understands them, gives truly informed consent, and approaches treatment with confidence.

For the patient

They see their own lesions, reproduced from their imaging, and how the proposed treatment unfolds. They leave with the same material and can review it at home, with their family, as often as they like, before giving consent.

For the physician

Each visit created with an account keeps a record of the information provided: what was shown, when, and whether the patient reviewed it. The model image, with the anatomical findings, the proposed treatment and the QR code, downloads for the patient's chart and prints. Informed consent, as the Joint Commission puts it, is more than getting a signature.

Saved and datedThe exact state of the model: injuries shown, treatment proposed.
Identical, archivableThe patient receives what you showed; the image goes in the chart and prints.
TrackedEach time the patient opens the link is recorded.
AnonymousThe link given to the patient carries no identifying data.

“Document the informed consent conversation and the patient’s (or surrogate’s) decision in the medical record in some manner.”

AMA Code of Medical Ethics, Opinion 2.1.1, Informed Consent

The model supports the consent conversation and the written consent form; it does not replace them. Data and privacy: legal information (in French).

Questions

Questions from colleagues

Is the model free?

Partly: the model and most of the lesions are free. Treatments (nonoperative, repair) and other features are paid options.

Do I need an account?

Not to open the model, set the lesions and walk through the treatment. After about fifteen adjustments, you will be asked to create a free account: it saves your visits, picks them up from one time to the next, and records when the patient opens the link.

What equipment do I need?

Just a web browser, nothing to install: computer, tablet or TV screen in the exam room; the patient opens it on their phone. One click saves an image, without the interface, for the chart.

What happens to patient data?

No patient names are stored. The link given to the patient carries only the state of the model: lesions, treatment, language and visit date. A name written on the image you hand out stays on that image.

Is it a medical device?

No: it is an educational tool. It does not diagnose, does not plan surgery, and does not replace the consent conversation or the written consent form. Among software functions that are not medical devices, the FDA lists those intended for general patient education and interactive anatomy diagrams used for training.

How long does it take in clinic?

Three adjustments and one procedure played: a few minutes, during the visit. The patient reviews it at home, as often as they like.

Can the injury mechanism be shown?

Yes: slow flexion in pronation, then sudden forced extension and supination; as extension stops, the tendon tears off and retracts, and the camera moves to the stump and the bare tuberosity.

What if I don't operate?

Nonoperative treatment plays like a procedure: the tendon scars onto the brachialis, the loss of flexion and supination strength is shown, and range of motion is shown to be preserved.

Can I embed it on my website?

It is planned for upcoming plans: the model displayed on a practice or hospital website, credited to EMET Education.

Which languages?

English, Spanish, French and Russian. The patient receives the model in the language chosen during the visit, which helps with the roughly 28 million people in the U.S. with limited English proficiency, alongside a qualified interpreter, not instead of one.

Design

Who designed this model

Model designed by Dr. Mikaël Chelli, orthopedic surgeon, based on the reference classifications. Updated October 2, 2026.

Boyd H.B., Anderson L.D. A method for reinsertion of the distal biceps brachii tendon. J Bone Joint Surg Am, 1961.
Morrey B.F. et al. Rupture of the distal tendon of the biceps brachii. A biomechanical study. J Bone Joint Surg Am, 1985.
Bain G.I. et al. Repair of distal biceps tendon rupture: a new technique using the Endobutton. J Shoulder Elbow Surg, 2000.
Safran M.R., Graham S.M. Distal biceps tendon ruptures: incidence, demographics, and the effect of smoking. Clin Orthop Relat Res, 2002.
Grewal R. et al. Single versus double-incision technique for the repair of acute distal biceps tendon ruptures: a randomized clinical trial. J Bone Joint Surg Am, 2012.

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