Methods for injecting a curable biomaterial into an intervertebral space
First Claim
1. A method for treating a diseased or damaged intervertebral spinal disc having an inner nucleus pulposus and an outer annulus, comprising the steps of:
- providing access to the nucleus pulposus through the annulus;
removing at least a portion of said nucleus pulposus to create an intradiscal space;
determining the integrity of said annulus; and
then sealably introducing under pressure a curable biomaterial through said annulus access directly into said intradiscal space.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method for treating a diseased or damaged spinal disc having an inner nucleus pulposus and an outer annulus is provided comprises the steps of: providing access to the nucleus pulposus through the annulus; removing at least a portion of the nucleus pulposus to create an intradiscal space; determining the integrity of the annulus; and then sealably introducing under pressure a curable biomaterial through the annulus access directly into the intradiscal space. The step of determining the integrity of the annulus may be accomplished by introducing into the disc a fluid solution under a first pressure. The curable biomaterial may subsequently be introduced through the annulus directly into said intradiscal space at a second pressure that is increased or decreased from the first pressure as a function of the viscosity of the biomaterial relative to the fluid solution. In certain embodiments, a distraction force is applied to the disc space.
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Citations
46 Claims
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1. A method for treating a diseased or damaged intervertebral spinal disc having an inner nucleus pulposus and an outer annulus, comprising the steps of:
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providing access to the nucleus pulposus through the annulus;
removing at least a portion of said nucleus pulposus to create an intradiscal space;
determining the integrity of said annulus; and
thensealably introducing under pressure a curable biomaterial through said annulus access directly into said intradiscal space. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A method for treating a diseased or damaged intervertebral spinal disc having an inner nucleus pulposus and an outer annulus, comprising the steps of:
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providing access to the nucleus pulposus through the annulus;
removing at least a portion of said nucleus pulposus to create an intradiscal space;
sealably introducing into said disc through said opening a fluid solution under a first pressure to determine the integrity of said annulus; and
thensealably introducing under a second pressure a curable biomaterial through said annulus directly into said intradiscal space. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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31. A method for treating a diseased or damaged intervertebral spinal disc between opposing vertebral bodies having an inner nucleus pulposus and an outer annulus, comprising the steps of:
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providing access to the nucleus pulposus through the annulus;
removing at least a portion of the nucleus pulposus to create an intradiscal space;
applying a force to distract the opposing vertebral bodies about the intradiscal space;
determining the integrity of said annulus, and then sealably introducing under pressure a curable biomaterial through said annulus access directly into said intradiscal space. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46)
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Specification