Patent ID: 7326251

Claim:
A spacer for positioning between adjacent vertebrae, comprising: an elongated central body portion having a front end, a rear end and a central longitudinal axis extending between said front end and said rear end, a convex top surface extending along said longitudinal axis adapted for placement against an upper vertebra, the top surface having an arc of convexity extending between the front end and rear end; an opposing bottom surface extending along said longitudinal axis configured for placement against a lower vertebra, a first lateral surface positioned between said top surface and said bottom surface, a first majority of the first lateral surface being concave with a vertical arc of concavity extending substantially from the top surface to the bottom surface; and an opposite second lateral surface positioned between said top surface and said bottom surface, a second majority of the second lateral surface being concave with a vertical arc of concavity extending substantially from the top surface to the bottom surface; wherein said first majority of the first lateral surface and said second majority of the second lateral surface each extend longitudinally at a non-parallel angle with respect to said central longitudinal axis; wherein a height extending between the top and bottom surfaces is greater than a width extending between the first and second lateral surfaces at each point along the longitudinal axis of the spacer.