Implant
First Claim
1. An intervertebral disc nucleus pulposus implant, comprising:
- a member for insertion, through an opening in an intervertebral disc annulus fibrosis, into an intervertebral disc space, said member being configurable into a first, predetermined configuration in which said member is folded at at least three positions, and a second configuration in which said member is not folded at at least one of the three positions, the second configuration being for the insertion of said member, said member being configurable back into the first configuration after the insertion.
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0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An intervertebral disc nucleus replacement is provided that is configurable into a first configuration to be assumed while the replacement is implanted in the nuclear cavity and a second configuration to be assumed during the procedure of inserting the replacement into the nuclear cavity. The first configuration may have an accordion-like structure formed by a plurality of sections folded in an alternating, zigzag-like manner, and may be sized and shaped to conform to the nuclear cavity. The second configuration may be formed by straightening the plurality of folded sections into an unfolded, elongated, linear member, thereby affording a smaller effective cross-section. The nucleus replacement may be made of an elastic material having shape memory and may be formed so that the first configuration is an unmanipulated or relaxed configuration and the second configuration is a manipulated or unrelaxed configuration.
214 Citations
22 Claims
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1. An intervertebral disc nucleus pulposus implant, comprising:
a member for insertion, through an opening in an intervertebral disc annulus fibrosis, into an intervertebral disc space, said member being configurable into a first, predetermined configuration in which said member is folded at at least three positions, and a second configuration in which said member is not folded at at least one of the three positions, the second configuration being for the insertion of said member, said member being configurable back into the first configuration after the insertion. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. An intervertebral disc nucleus pulposus implant, comprising:
a member for insertion, through an opening in an intervertebral disc annulus fibrosis, into an intervertebral disc space, said member being configurable into a first, unmanipulated configuration in which said member is folded at at least a first position and said member is reverse folded at at least a second position, and a second configuration in which said member is not folded at at least one of the first and second positions, the second configuration being for the insertion of said member, said member being configurable back into the first configuration after the insertion. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. An implant, comprising:
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a member for insertion through an opening, said member being configurable into a first, unmanipulated configuration having a length and a width, and a second configuration having a cross-section, taken perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of said member, the cross-section having a length and a width, the second configuration being for the insertion of said member, said member being configurable back into the first configuration after the insertion, wherein, when said member is in the first configuration, said member comprises at least three sections extending transverse to the length of said member in the first configuration, and wherein the ratio of the width of the cross-section of said member in the second configuration to the length of said member in the first configuration is less than or equal to approximately 0.25. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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Specification