Patent ID: 7896919

Claim:
A method of implanting an intervertebral disk prosthesis by the posterior technique, the prosthesis comprising: a first fixing element having an anchoring first face for anchoring the first fixing element to one of the two vertebrae, and a co-operation second face; a first prosthesis element having an active first face and a co-operation second face, the co-operation faces of the first fixing element and of the first prosthesis element, respectively, being fixed in opposition to each other such that the first fixing element and the first prosthesis element are fixed to one another in a plane substantially orthogonal to the axis of the vertebrae; a second fixing element having an anchoring first face for anchoring the second fixing element to in the other of the two vertebrae and a co-operation second face; and a second prosthesis element having an active first face and a co-operation second face, the co-operation faces of the second fixing element and of the second prosthesis element, respectively, being fixed in opposition to each other such that the second fixing element and the second prosthesis element are fixed to one another in a plane substantially orthogonal to the axis of the vertebrae; wherein the active first face of the first prosthesis element and the active first face of the second prosthesis element are disposed in moveable opposition to each other, one of the active first faces being concave and the other of the active first faces being convex so as to define a spherical cap, wherein the first prosthesis element comprises two distinct parts, each of the two distinct parts comprising the first prosthesis element having respective surfaces arranged so as to collectively define the active first face, wherein the second prosthesis element comprises two distinct parts, each of the two distinct parts comprising the second prosthesis element having respective surfaces arranged so as to collectively define the active second face, the method comprising: providing a posterior access to an intervertebral space into which the prosthesis is to be implanted; moving apart the two vertebrae intervertebral defining the intervertebral space; removing the natural intervertebral disk; and implanting the prosthesis between the vertebrae by performing the following steps: a) inserting at least one of the fixing elements between the vertebrae around one side of the dura mater; b) causing the inserted fixing element to turn so as to place it beyond the dura mater in its anchoring location; c) anchoring the fixing element in one of the vertebrae; d) when necessary, repeating steps a), b), and c) for the second fixing element; e) introducing the prosthesis elements around at least one side of the dura mater; and f) causing each prosthesis element to co-operate with a fixing element.