# US 2014/0156007 A1 · Expandable Cage for the Intercorporal Fusion of Lumbar Vertebrae

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- Number: US 2014/0156007 A1
- Document ID: US20140156007A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 14/087,860
- Filed: 2013-11-22
- Published: 2014-06-05
- Earliest claimed: 2012-11-26
- Assignees: spontech spine intelligence AG
- Applicants: spontech spine intelligence AG
- Inventors: Martin Pabst; Lino Taddia; Thomas Pandorf; Marcus Spitsenberg; Christoph Kohlbrenner
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20140156007A1

## CPC

- A61F 2/447: {substantially parallelepipedal, e.g. having a rectangular or trapezoidal cross-section}
- A61F 2/44: for the spine, e.g. vertebrae or spinal discs
- A61F 2/442: {Intervertebral or spinal discs, e.g. resilient (non-disc-shaped intervertebral inflatable pockets A61F2/441; non-disc-shaped intervertebral fusion implants A61F2/4455)}
- A61F 2/4455: {for the fusion of spinal bodies, e.g. intervertebral fusion of adjacent spinal bodies, e.g. fusion cages (intervertebral discs A61F2/442)}
- A61F 2/4611: {of spinal prostheses}
- A61F 2002/30151: {rhomboidal or parallelogram-shaped}
- A61F 2002/30153: {rectangular}
- A61F 2002/30158: {trapezoidal}
- A61F 2002/30166: {H-shaped or I-shaped}
- A61F 2002/30266: {wedge-shaped parallelepipeds}
- A61F 2002/30365: {with additional means for limiting said rotation}
- A61F 2002/3039: {with possibility of relative movement of the rib within the groove}
- A61F 2002/30397: {Limited lateral translation of the rib within a larger groove}
- A61F 2002/30401: {with additional means for preventing or locking said sliding}
- A61F 2002/30482: {using a locking cam}
- A61F 2002/30484: {Mechanically expandable devices located on the first prosthetic part for locking into or onto the second prosthetic part}
- A61F 2002/30515: {using a locking wedge or block}
- A61F 2002/30518: {with possibility of relative movement between the prosthetic parts}
- A61F 2002/3054: {about a connection axis or implantation axis for selecting any one of a plurality of radial orientations between two modular parts, e.g. Morse taper connections, at discrete positions, angular positions or continuous positions}
- A61F 2002/30556: {for adjusting thickness}
- A61F 2002/30593: {hollow}
- A61F 2002/30624: {Hinged joint, e.g. with transverse axle restricting the movement}
- A61F 2002/30774: {internally-threaded}
- A61F 2002/30777: {Oblong apertures}
- A61F 2002/30785: {parallel}
- A61F 2002/30789: {perpendicular with respect to each other}
- A61F 2002/30822: {Circumferential grooves}
- A61F 2002/30843: {Pyramidally-shaped}
- A61F 2002/30897: {Stepped protrusions, i.e. having discrete diameter changes}
- A61F 2002/4629: {connected to the endoprosthesis or implant via a threaded connection}
- A61F: FILTERS IMPLANTABLE INTO BLOOD VESSELS; PROSTHESES; DEVICES PROVIDING PATENCY TO, OR PREVENTING COLLAPSING OF, TUBULAR STRUCTURES OF THE BODY, e.g. STENTS; ORTHOPAEDIC, NURSING OR CONTRACEPTIVE DEVICES; FOMENTATION; TREATMENT OR PROTECTION OF EYES OR EARS; BANDAGES, DRESSINGS OR ABSORBENT PADS; FIRST-AID KITS (dental prosthetics A61C)

## Abstract

An expandable cage for intercorporal fusion of lumbar vertebrae comprises a main body with two expandable parallel arms. Each arm has a supporting surface pointing outside and configured to contact an adjacent vertebral body, a groove pointing inside and extending along a transverse direction, and a channel pointing inside and extending along a longitudinal direction. An expansion element is instrument actuated and presses the arms apart expanding the cage. The expansion element is between the arms and comprises a cylindrical base body, two opposing radially aligned ribs on the base body, and a rectangular plate. Both the base body and ribs have curved, pair-wise opposed bearing surfaces. Depending on the cage's expansion state, either the base body bearing surfaces or the rib bearing surfaces contact channels provided in the arms, while the plate engages in the grooves of the arms.

## Claims

### Claim 1

An expandable cage for the intercorporal fusion of lumbar vertebrae, comprising
an elongated main body that comprises
two expandable arms that extend in an at least substantially parallel fashion to each other, wherein each arm has
a supporting surface pointing outside and configured to contact an adjacent vertebral body,
a groove pointing inside and extending along a transverse direction of the main body, and
a channel pointing inside and extending along a longitudinal direction of the main body,
a bridge-like connection section connecting the arms so that, in a medial longitudinal section, the main body has at least substantially a U-shaped profile and the arms have two free ends, wherein the bridge-like connection section has an opening that is configured to receive an instrument for expanding the cage;
an expansion element that is configured to press, if the expansion element is actuated by the instrument, the arms apart thereby expanding the cage, wherein the expansion element
is located at the free ends of the arms and is rotatably mounted between the arms,
comprises an elongated base body, two opposing radially aligned ribs attached to the base body and extending along the longitudinal direction of the main body, and a rectangular plate that
is connected to the base body,
has rounded edges and
has short sides that engage in the grooves provided in the arms both in the unexpanded and expanded state of the cage,
wherein the expansion element further comprises a driving device that is located at a rear side of the expansion element, points towards the bridge-like connection and is configured to establish a releasable connection to the instrument,
wherein both the base body and the ribs have curved, pair-wise opposed bearing surfaces, and wherein, depending on the expansion state of the cage, either the bearing surfaces of the base body or the bearing surfaces of the ribs contact the channels provided in the arms.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein the base body has a cylindrical shape.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein the driving device is configured to establish a multi-tooth connection to the instrument.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The cage of claim 3, wherein the driving device comprises a hexalobular socket.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, the expansion element comprises a further driving device that is located at a front side of the expansion element, points away from the bridge-like connection and is configured to establish a releasable connection to a revision tool, wherein the further driving element has a central bore passing through the base body and two grooves that project from the bore, extend in the direction of the ribs and have a width that is smaller than a diameter of the bore.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein the grooves provided in the arms have base surfaces on which, in the expanded stat of the cage, the short sides of the rectangular plate rest.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The cage of claim 6, wherein bead-shaped recesses are formed centrally in the short sides of the rectangular plate, and wherein complementary raised portions are formed centrally in the base surfaces of the grooves.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein the plate has a lateral notch that is configured to enable a precise position control of the expansion element in the cage using an imaging technique.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein the arms comprise lateral hooks that are configured to prevent the expansion element from springing out into a faulty position.

### Claim 10 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein the opening in the bridge-like connection comprises a first cylindrical section having a smooth surface and a second cylindrical section having a threaded surface.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein the bridge-like connection is constructed in one piece with the arms so that the main body is monolithic.

### Claim 12 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein the bridge-like connection comprises a hinge-like joint formed between the arms.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The cage of claim 12, wherein the bridge-like connection comprises two hinge-like joints formed between the arms.

### Claim 14 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein the supporting surface of each arm has a curvature along the longitudinal direction of the main body and a lead-in chamfer at the free end of the arm, and wherein the supporting surface of each arm is provided with teeth configured to anchor the cage in the adjacent vertebral bodies.

### Claim 15 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein each arm has, in a plan view, the shape of a parallelogram.

### Claim 16 (depends on 15)

The cage of claim 15, wherein each arm has, in a plan view, the shape of a rectangle.

### Claim 17 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein each arm has, in a plan view, the shape of a′quadrilateral having sides of different lengths and two right-angles.

### Claim 18 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein each arm has, in a plan view, the shape of an ellipse.

### Claim 19 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein each arm is provided with an opening that becomes smaller towards the bridge-like connection.

### Claim 20 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein each arm is provided with a plurality of openings having the shape of slots that are arranged in mutually parallel fashion.

### Claim 21 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein each arm is provided with a plurality of openings having the shape of a rectangle.

### Claim 22 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein each arm is provided with a plurality of openings having the shape of bores.

### Claim 23 (depends on 1)

The cage of claim 1, wherein all outer corners and edges of the expansion element are blunted or provided with a radius.