Interspinous implant, tools and methods of implanting

A tool for implanting an interspinous implant device, said tool comprising:

• a pair of distraction arms at a distal end portion of said tool pivotally mounted for movement towards and away from one another;
• distal end portions of said distraction arms configured to slide over portions of the interspinous implant device to be implanted;
• lock arms operable to lock said distal end portions to the interspinous implant device;
• and
• a pair of drive arms at a proximal end portion of said tool connected via the pivotal mount to said distraction arms and operable to drive said distraction arms toward each other and away from one another.

A method of treating spinal disorders and associated discomfort therefrom, said method comprising the steps of:

• inserting a pair of adjacent arms between adjacent spinous processes of the spinal column wherein the pair of arms are inserted laterally, from a single side of the spinous processes;
• separating the arms in opposite directions transverse to a direction in which the arms extend;
• and
• fixing the arms in a separated, configuration resulting from said separating, said arms remaining in said separated configuration as an implant.