Patent ID: 6890356
Filing Date: 2005-05-10
Classification: A61B,A61F,Y10S

Abstract:
1. A surgical treatment for restoring a proper anatomical spacing and alignment to vertebral bones of a scoliosis patient comprising: determining an angular misalignment associated with at least one pair of adjacent vertebral bones; sequentially inserting and removing a series of progressively wider spacer elements into the corresponding intervertebral space between said at least one pair of adjacent vertebral bones until the proper anatomical spacing between the pair of adjacent vertebral bones is restored; for each intervertebral space, inserting a tapered porous spacer element into the intervertebral space between said corresponding pair of adjacent vertebral bones; rotating, about an axis passing through both vertebral bones of said corresponding pair of adjacent vertebral bones, said tapered porous spacer element such that the rotational orientation of the tapered porous spacer element introduces the appropriate counter alignment to the intervertebral space of the previously misaligned scoliotic vertebral bones, thereby restoring the proper anatomical alignment of the vertebral bones; and stabilizing the pair of adjacent vertebral bones to permit infused growth of bone into the tapered porous spacer element.