Patent ID: 8109972

Claim:
An apparatus, comprising: an interspinous-process spacer having a first expandable wing, a second expandable wing, a body disposed between the first and second expandable wings, and an inner elongate member; the spacer further comprising a longitudinal axis; a proximal direction defined along the axis from the first wing toward the second wing; the first and second expandable wings movable from collapsed configuration to an expanded configuration; the first and second expandable wings extending relatively further from the axis in their expanded configurations than in their collapsed configurations; the inner elongate member having a complimentary fit within a lumen defined by the expandable wing when the expandable wing is in a collapsed configuration; the elongate member being non-hollow and having a portion thereof that is disposed proximally relative to the body and overlapped by the second wing when the first and second wings are in their collapsed configurations; wherein the elongate member is longitudinally displaceable proximally relative to the body to cause both: the first and second wings to move from their collapsed configurations to their expanded configurations; the portion of the elongate member to be disposed more proximally than the second wing so that the second wing is disposed between the portion of the elongate member and the body.