Patent ID: 8858603

Claim:
An implant system, comprising: a pair of fasteners for being installed into a bone, each fastener having a head; a plate having two fastener apertures arranged as a lateral pair and into which the fasteners are installed, the plate including an interior recess within the plate between the lateral pair of the apertures, the recess including a flat edged receiver and the plate including a slot defined along a portion of each aperture adjacent the recess; and a horseshoe-shaped clip member haying a central base from which extends opposed curved lobes, the base having a rear substantially flat edged projection received by and engaging the flat edged receiver of the interior recess of the plate, the horseshoe-shaped clip member having an open end located between the opposed curved lobes at an opposite end of the horseshoe-shaped clip member from the central base, wherein the flat edged receiver of the plate cooperates with the flat edged projection of the base of the horseshoe-shaped clip member to substantially retain the horseshoe-shaped clip member in a fixed position within the plate, with portions of the lobes of the horseshoe-shaped clip member extending out of the recess via the slots so as to extend into each aperture of the lateral pair of apertures a sufficient distance so as to substantially prevent the head of the fastener within one of the apertures from backing out of or otherwise passing out of the aperture once the fastener has been installed.