Expandable interbody fusion device
AssigneeSpine Wave, Inc.
InventorsMICHAEL LANDRY, STEVE WYSOCKI
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An expandable interbody fusion device includes superior and inferior plates that are configured to receive a sequentially inserted stack of expansion members or wafers. The superior and inferior plates include features that at least initially interlock the two plates until the superior plate is dislodged by pressure from the growing wafer stack. The wafers include features on their top and bottom surfaces that interlock the wafers in multiple degrees of freedom so that the wafer stack is not disrupted when the fusion device is fully expanded. Each wafer also includes features that interlock with the inferior plate until the wafer is dislodged by sequential introduction of another wafer.
Claims22
-9. (canceled)
An expansion member for sequential insertion into a space between opposing tissue surfaces to be distracted, comprising:
- an elongated body having an upper surface and an opposite lower surface, and an insertion end and an opposite trailing end;
- a female feature defined on one of said upper and lower surface, said female feature defining an elongated recess having an opening at said trailing end, an engagement surface adjacent said opening and an end wall at the insertion end opposite said opening;
- a male feature defined on the other of said upper and lower surface and configured for insertion through said opening, said male feature including an elongated boss configured to be received within a recess of an adjacent elongated body and having an engagement surface at the trailing end arranged to engage with a recess engagement surface of said adjacent elongated body when said boss is within said recess;
- and
- resilient interlocking features defined between said female and male features for resiliently interlocking adjacent elongated bodies when the male feature of one body is inserted into said female feature through said opening.
An expansion member for sequential insertion into a space between opposing tissue surfaces to be distracted, comprising:
- an elongated body having an upper surface and an opposite lower surface, and an insertion end and an opposite trailing end;
- a female feature defined on one of said upper and lower surface, said female feature having an opening at said trailing end;
- and
- a male feature defined on the other of said upper and lower surface and configured for insertion through said opening;
- and
- a locking feature defined between said female and male features for locking adjacent elongated bodies against relative movement along the length of the bodies when the male feature of one body is inserted into said female feature through said opening, said locking feature comprising cooperative engagement surfaces adjacent the trailing end of said elongated body.
An expansion member for sequential insertion into a space between opposing tissue surfaces to be distracted, comprising:
- an elongated body having an upper surface, an opposite lower surface, an insertion end and an opposite trailing end;
- said body including a boss projecting above said upper surface and an elongated recess defined in said lower surface beneath said boss having an opening adjacent the trailing end, said boss defining a rear engagement surface adjacent said trailing end opposite said insertion end and said recess defining an engagement surface adjacent the recess opening extending transversely relative to said recess;
- whereby when two of said expansion members are coupled, said boss of a lowermost expansion member fits within said recess of the uppermost expansion member, and said boss engagement surface engages said recess engagement surface.
-45. (canceled)
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.