Patent ID: 7963991

Claim:
A method for repairing a defect in the annulus fibrosus of an intervertebral disc located between the end plate of an adjacent upper vertebra and the end plate of an adjacent lower vertebra, said method comprising the steps of: A) removing a portion of the intervertebral disc to form an intervertebral space; B) obtaining or providing an implant device that comprises a head portion and a tail portion, wherein; the tail portion comprises a tail flange; and the head portion comprises a tapered distal segment, a middle segment and a proximal surface, the distal segment having non-parallel upper and lower edges that are closer together at their distal ends than at their proximal ends and the middle segment having upper and lower edges that are parallel to one another; C) removing bone from the end plates of the adjacent upper and lower vertebrae in a manner that forms contoured surfaces analogous to the shape of the implant device and, thereafter, D) implanting the implant device such that; i) the head portion resides in the intervertebral space between the areas from which bone has been removed and the proximal surface of the head portion contacts bone of the adjacent upper and lower vertebrae thereby deterring subsequent expulsion of the head portion from the intervertebral space and further thereby resisting any tendency of the upper and lower vertebrae to move closer to one another; and ii) the tail portion protrudes outside of the intervertbral space with the tail flange positioned so as to prevent the implant from being pushed further into the intervertebral space.