Patent ID: 8070754

Claim:
A method of placing an implant into a disc space between a pair of spinal vertebrae comprising the steps of: providing a distractor and an inserter having a distractor/inserter rail/groove interconnection; placing a distal end of the distractor into the disc space between the pair of spinal vertebrae; placing the implant at a proximal end of the distractor; placing the inserter into the distractor/inserter rail/groove interconnection and against the implant; moving the inserter along the distractor/inserter rail/groove interconnection to thereby move the implant from the proximal end of the distractor to the distal end of the distractor; inserting the implant into the disc space; and, deploying the implant within the intradical space by applying tension to a cable that is operatively connected to the implant and that extends at least partially through the inserter.