Patent ID: 8157828

Claim:
A method for marking a location on a patient, the method comprising: providing a marking tool including a cutting head having a screw thread and a handle coupled to the cutting head to manually rotate the cutting head, wherein the handle includes first and second handle members that are rotatable with respect to one another and the cutting head is affixed to the first handle member; and placing the cutting head in contact with the patient and manually rotating the cutting head with respect to the patient to progressively embed the screw thread into a skull of the patient to mark a location in the skull for a surgical procedure, including embedding the cutting head into the patient's skull only to a maximum depth less than the thickness of the skull; and thereafter removing the cutting head from the skull; wherein manually rotating the cutting head with respect to the patient includes manually rotating the first handle member with respect to the second handle member; and wherein the cutting head has a lead end and a limiter feature spaced apart a distance from the lead end, and an axial boring length extending from the lead end to a proximal end of the limiter feature is less than a thickness of the patient's skull.