US5011484A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Surgical implant for restricting the relative movement of vertebrae
Assignee: Individual
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Filing: 1989-10-10
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Granted: 1991-04-30
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Expires: 2009-10-10
Abstract
Abstract The present invention relates to a surgical implant designed to prevent mutual contact between vertebrae during flexions of the vertebral column, an implant which consists of an insert (1) shaped and dimensioned so that it can be inserted, in its longitudinal direction, between the vertebral spines (A) of at least two successive vertebrae (V), the said insert comprising or being associated with retaining means (L) designed to hold it in place on the vertebrae, at the same time permitting the mutual separation of the latter. Advantageously, the insert (1) has longitudinal grooves (2, 3) dimensioned to receive, with a certain amount of play, a corresponding vertebral spine (A), and the retaining means are constituted by a ligament (L) passing through transverse pierced holes, preferably two inclined, cross pierces holes (8), in the insert, and interlacing around the vertebral spines (A). Utilization to remove painful complaints of the spinal nerves, in particular sciatica.
Inventors
- 👤 Francis H. Breard
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-23 11:58
CPC Classifications
A; A61; A61B; A61B17/00; A61B17/56; A61B17/58; A61B17/68; A61B17/70; A61B17/7062; A61B17/7053; A61B17/84; A61B17/842; A61F; A61F2/00; A61F2/02; A61F2/08; A61F2/30; A61F2/30721; A61F2/30724; A61F2002/30001; A61F2002/30108; A61F2002/3011; A61F2002/30159; A61F2002/30166; A61F2/30767; A61F2/30771; A61F2002/30772; A61F2002/30784; A61F2002/30787; A61F2/44; A61F2002/449; A61F2230/00; A61F2230/0002; A61F2230/0028
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 17
Claim 1
Independent Claim
91 words
Surgical implant designed to prevent mutual contact between vertebrae during flexions of the vertebral column characterized in that the implant includes an intervertebral insert (1a) insertable between the vertebral spines (A) of at least two successive vertebrae (V), the insert (1a) being pierced right through in its direction of insertion by a hole (16) to permit the passage of a corresponding vertebral spine (A), retaining means (21) to hold the insert in place in relation to the said vertebral spines, there being a possibility of heightwise relative deflection for the latter.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
91 words
Surgical implant designed to prevent mutual contact between vertebrae during flexions of the vertebral column characterized in that the implant includes an intervertebral insert (1a) insertable between the vertebral spines (A) of at least two successive vertebrae (V), the insert (1a) being pierced right through in its direction of insertion by a hole (16) to permit the passage of a corresponding vertebral spine (A), retaining means (21) to hold the insert in place in relation to the said vertebral spines, there being a possibility of heightwise relative deflection for the latter.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
37 words
Surgical implant according to claim 1 characterized in that the insert has, on two opposite end faces, a groove (19, 20) for receiving and guiding a corresponding vertebral spine (A), overdimensioned in relation to the said spine.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
75 words
Surgical implant according to claim 2, characterized in that the insert (1a) is extended, on either side of the groove (19, 20), by two high lateral arms (17, 18) which are joined, in the vicinity of their free ends, by a pin (21) constituting the said retaining means by delimiting, with the said lateral arms and the bottom of the groove, a space for receiving with a degree of play a corresponding vertebral spine (A).
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
99 words
Surgical implant for preventing mutual contact between vertebrae during flexions of the vertebral column, characterized in that the implant includes an inter-vertebral insert insertable between the vertebral spines of at least two successive vertebrae, the insert further comprises at least one drilled hole transverse to its direction of insertion and open at two ends and retaining means defining at least one ligament for holding the insert in place in relation to the vertebral spines, the holes in the insert to permit the passage of the said ligament, there being a possibility of heightwise relative deflection of the vertebral spines.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
99 words
Surgical implant for preventing mutual contact between vertebrae during flexions of the vertebral column, characterized in that the implant includes an inter-vertebral insert insertable between the vertebral spines of at least two successive vertebrae, the insert further comprises at least one drilled hole transverse to its direction of insertion and open at two ends and retaining means defining at least one ligament for holding the insert in place in relation to the vertebral spines, the holes in the insert to permit the passage of the said ligament, there being a possibility of heightwise relative deflection of the vertebral spines.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
19 words
Surgical implant according to claim 4, characterized in that the insert comprises two inclined, crossed pierced holes (8, 9).
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
27 words
Surgical implant according to claim 5, characterized in that each of the pierced holes (8, 9) is terminated, at each end, by a flared opening (10, 11).
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
133 words
Surgical implant for preventing mutual contact between vertebrae of a vertebral column during flexions of the vertebral column, said surgical implant comprising: an inter-vertebral insert means insertable between vertebral spines of successive vertebrae which form a section to be treated of the vertebral column, said inter-vertebral insert means having two end surfaces for respectively contacting the spines of the end vertebrae of said section of the vertebral column; and retaining means associated with said inter-vertebral insert means and having portions to be passed over said spines of said two end vertebrae, said portions of said retaining means being so distant from the end surfaces of said inter-vertebral insert means that the retaining means allow the vertebrae to have a relative limited movement away from each other upon forward flexion of the vertebral column.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
133 words
Surgical implant for preventing mutual contact between vertebrae of a vertebral column during flexions of the vertebral column, said surgical implant comprising: an inter-vertebral insert means insertable between vertebral spines of successive vertebrae which form a section to be treated of the vertebral column, said inter-vertebral insert means having two end surfaces for respectively contacting the spines of the end vertebrae of said section of the vertebral column; and retaining means associated with said inter-vertebral insert means and having portions to be passed over said spines of said two end vertebrae, said portions of said retaining means being so distant from the end surfaces of said inter-vertebral insert means that the retaining means allow the vertebrae to have a relative limited movement away from each other upon forward flexion of the vertebral column.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
64 words
Surgical implant according to claim 7, characterized in that said inter-vertebral insert means comprises a plurality of individual insert members, each of which is insertable between two respective vertebrae of said section and has, on one of the two opposite end surfaces, a groove which is over-dimensioned in relation to a corresponding vertebral spine, in order to freely receive and guide the vertebral spine.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
25 words
Surgical implant according to claim 8, characterized in that each groove (2, 3) has a width that decreases progressively from one end to the other.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
49 words
Surgical implant according to claim 8, characterized in that the retaining means include a ligament and each said insert member comprises at least one hole formed transverse to the direction of insertion of the insert and open at their two ends to permit the passage of the said ligament.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
17 words
Surgical implant according to claim 10, characterized in that the insert member comprises two inclined, crossed holes.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
22 words
Surgical implant according to claim 11, characterized in that each of the holes is terminated, at each end, by a flared opening.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
66 words
Surgical implant according to claim 8, characterized in that the insert member comprises, on either side of each said groove, two high lateral arms which are joined, in the vicinity of their free ends, by a pin constituting the said retaining means by delimiting, with said lateral arms and the bottom of the groove, a space for receiving with a lateral play a corresponding vertebral spine.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
47 words
Surgical implant according to claim 13, characterized in that the insert member is provided right through in its direction of insertion with a hole to permit the passage of the vertebral spine of a corresponding intermediate vertebra of said section to be treated of the vertebral column.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1994-04-29 | 1994-10-29 | 1995-04-30 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1998-04-29 | 1998-10-29 | 1999-04-30 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2002-04-29 | 2002-10-29 | 2003-04-30 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |