Patent ID: 8202274

Claim:
An apparatus for detecting the presence of a connecting rod during percutaneous spinal surgery, comprising: an elongate tubular member having a proximal end and a distal end and an opening therethrough and defining a first side and an opposing second side; an elongate strip extending longitudinally within said tubular member and having a proximal end defining a flag projecting outwardly from the proximal end of said tubular member and a distal end axially offset from the flag and defining an elastically flexible rod detection tip projecting outwardly beyond the distal end of said tubular member; a pivot supporting said strip within said tubular member for pivoting movement of said strip relative to the longitudinal axis of said tubular member; and a biasing member biasing said elongate strip in a first position wherein said flag at the proximal end is adjacent said first side of said tubular member and said detection tip at the distal end is adjacent the opposite second side, said strip being pivotal about said pivot upon application of a force against said detection tip in a direction generally transverse to the axis of the tubular member sufficient to overcome said bias to elastically flex said detection tip and to pivotally shift said flag to a second position adjacent said second side.