Patent ID: RE40796

Claim:
A method for harvesting bone through a guided delivery instrumentation system which operates through a percutaneous, laparoscopic, minimally-invasive technique, comprising the steps of: making a small incision above a harvest site; inserting an elongated guide wire with a blunt proximal end and a pointed distal end into the incision, distal end first, to a bone area to be harvested; gently impacting the guide wire proximal end whereby the guide wire distal end enters into said bone area in the harvest site; placing a cylindrical obturator with a generally cylindrical channel centrally formed within said obturator along its central longitudinal axis concentrically over the guide wire; guiding the obturator onto to the guide wire toward the guide wire distal end whereby the obturator gradually splits muscle and tissue until it contacts said bone; placing a first, hollow, cylindrical dilator concentrically over said obturator thereby increasing said incision to a percutaneous approach; removing said guide wire and obturator; placing an impactor cap over said first dilator; gently tapping said first dilator with said impactor cap into said harvest site bone; inserting an elongated, hollow, cutting cylinder, said cutting cylinder having a handle on a proximal end and a hollow and a cutting tip on a distal end, into said first dilator whereby said cutting tip is brought into engagement with said bone; cutting a portion of said bone with said cutting tip and bringing said cut portion through the hollow cutting tip into the cutting cylinder; removing the cutting cylinder and cutter tip from the first dilator; removing the handle from said cutter cylinder; removing the cut bone from the cutter cylinder; removing the first dilator from said harvest site; and closing the incision.