Patent ID: 8623058

Claim:
A medical procedure for stabilizing a patient's spine with an implant, the procedure comprising: installing a first vertebral anchor into a first vertebra during a surgery; installing a second vertebral anchor into a second vertebra during the surgery; providing a flexible member having a flexibility, the flexible member including a first end, a second end and a length between the first end and the second end, a first portion of the flexible member being formed of a first material having a first elasticity and a second portion of the flexible member being formed of a second material having a second elasticity different from the first elasticity; reducing the length of the flexible member to change the flexibility of the flexible member during the surgery, including making a cut at a longitudinal location along the flexible member such that the cut traverses both the first portion formed of the first material and the second portion formed of the second material; and coupling the flexible member between the first vertebral anchor and the second vertebral anchor during the surgery.