Bone harvesting method and apparatus

A method for harvesting bone through a guided delivery instrumentation system which operates through a percutaneous, laparoscopic, minimally-invasive technique, comprising the steps of:

• making a small incision above a harvest site;
• inserting an elongated guide wire with a blunt proximal end and a pointed distal end into the incision, distal end first, to a bone area to be harvested;
• gently impacting the guide wire proximal end whereby the guide wire distal end enters into said bone area in the harvest site;
• placing a cylindrical obturator with a generally cylindrical channel centrally formed within said obturator along its central longitudinal axis concentrically over the guide wire;
• guiding the obturator onto to the guide wire toward the guide wire distal end whereby the obturator gradually splits muscle and tissue until it contacts said bone;
• placing a first, hollow, cylindrical dilator concentrically over said obturator thereby increasing said incision to a percutaneous approach;
• removing said guide wire and obturator;
• placing an impactor cap over said first dilator;
• gently tapping said first dilator with impactor cap into said harvest site bone;
• inserting an elongated, hollow, cutting cylinder, said cutting cylinder having a handle on a proximal end and a hollow and a cutting tip on a distal end, into said first dilator whereby said cutting tip is brought into engagement with said bone;
• cutting a portion of said bone with said cutting tip and bringing said cut portion through the hollow cutting tip into the cutting cylinder;
• removing the cutting cylinder and cutter tip from the first dilator;
• removing the handle from said cutter cylinder;
• removing the cut bone from the cutter cylinder;
• removing the first dilator from said harvest site;
• and
• closing the incision.