Patent ID: 7496980

Claim:
An apparatus for transforming a top surface of an operating table into a dedicated back surgery platform, comprising: a generally rigid and planar frame configured to rest on the top surface of the operating table, wherein at least a portion of the frame is commensurate in size, and coextensive with an outer-peripheral surface of the entire top surface of the operating table; and support members, adjustably attached to the frame, configured to (i) support a patient lying facedown in a prone position and (ii) elevate at least the head, and torso of the patient above the surface of the operating table; wherein each support member has a structure contoured to: (A) correspond with a particular anatomy of a patient for which the support member supports and/or elevates above the surface of the operating table when in a prone position, and (B) to abut and provide lateral support to outer portions of at least the head and the torso of the patient sufficient to restrain the patient when the patient is rotated 180 degrees from either a supine or the prone position, when the frame is: (i) fastened to a transfer system with the patient sandwiched between the support members and a posterior platen of the transfer system, and (ii) rotated about a central axis, free of the operating table; wherein the frame is interposed between the top surface of the operating table and the support members when resting on the top surface of the operating table.