Prosthetic intervertebral discs having end plates and fibers between those end plates

A prosthetic intervertebral disc, comprising:

• an upper plate including a first plurality of slots extending vertically between an upper surface and a lower surface of the upper plate, each of the first plurality of slots being enclosed horizontally by the upper plate;
• a lower plate including a second plurality of slots extending vertically between an upper surface and a lower surface of the lower plate, each of the second plurality of slots being enclosed horizontally by the lower plate;
• a core member positioned between the upper and lower plates;
• and
• a fibrous component extending through at least one slot of the first plurality of slots in the upper plate in a first direction from the lower surface to the upper surface of the upper plate, through at least a second slot of the first plurality of slots in a second direction from the upper surface to the lower surface of the upper plate, and through at least one of the second plurality of slots in the lower plate such that the upper plate is held to the lower plate.

A prosthetic intervertebral disc, comprising:

• a first plate including a first plurality of slots, each of the first plurality of slots including a length, a depth, and a width that is constant along a first part of the length of each slot and varies along a second part of the length of each slot
• a second plate including a second plurality of slots, each of the second plurality of slots including a length, a depth, and a width that is constant along a first part of the length of each slot and varies along a second part of the length of each slot;
• a core member located between the first plate and the second plate;
• and
• a fibrous component extending through at least one slot of the first plurality of slots in a first direction extending from a lower surface to an upper surface of the first plate along the depth of the at least one slot of the first plurality of slots, through at least a second slot of the first plurality of slots in a second direction extending from the upper surface to the lower surface of the first plate along the depth of the second slot of the first plurality of slots, and through at least one slot of the second plurality of slots along the depth of the at least one of the second plurality of slots, such that the first plate is held to the second plate.