Patent ID: 7985247

Claim:
A method of treating the spine of a patient, comprising: inserting an access device through an incision in the skin of the patient generally posteriorly until a distal portion of the access device is located adjacent the spine of the patient, said access device being inserted in a first configuration having a first cross-sectional area at the distal portion thereof; actuating said access device to a second configuration having an enlarged cross-sectional area at said distal portion thereof that spans at least a portion of a first vertebra, at least a portion of a second vertebra, and at least a portion of a third vertebra; placing a fusion device through the access device and in at least one of a first interbody space between the first and second vertebrae and a second interbody space between the second and third vertebrae; performing a two level fixation procedure spanning the first and second interbody spaces through the access device by inserting at least one fastener into each of the first, second, and third vertebrae and attaching an elongated member to the fasteners, wherein the fastener includes a screw and a U-shaped housing adapted to receive a joint region of the screw and the elongated member, wherein the housing and joint region are configured to allow movement of the housing relative to the screw to achieve a desired orientation of the elongated member with respect to the housing; advancing a decompression tool through the access device; and removing a portion of bone from one of the first vertebrae, the second vertebrae, and the third vertebrae through the access device; wherein the steps of placing the fusion device in an interbody space, inserting fasteners into first, second, and third vertebrae, attaching an elongated member to the fasteners, advancing a decompression tool, and removing a portion of bone from a vertebrae are all performed through the same access device with the access device inserted in the same incision.