a surgical plate and process for preventing screw backout of repaired bones . at least one pawl is provided on a surgical plate adjacent to a screw hole . a screw having a ratchet wheel is inserted through the hole and screwed into the bone . the pawl engages the ratchet wheel to prevent rotational movement of the screw to prevent the screw from backing out . in a preferred embodiment , a pawl plate comprising a base portion is rigidly connected to the surgical plate and a torsion bar is pivotally connected to the base portion . the pawl is positioned at the end of the torsion bar . in the preferred embodiments , several of these special screw holes with pawls , and several screws are used in bone repair .