Spinal disc annulus reconstruction method and deformable spinal disc annulus stent

Abstract

A spinal disc annulus repair stent for repair and reconstruction of the spinal disc wall (annulus) after surgical invasion or pathologic rupture, which may incorporate suture closure or other means of stent insertion and fixation, designed to reduce the failure rate of conventional surgical procedures on the spinal discs. In an illustrative embodiment, the design of the spinal disc annulus stent advantageously allows ingrowth of normal cells of healing in an enhanced fashion strengthening the normal reparative process.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO A RELATED APPLICATION [0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 10 / 352,981, filed Jan. 29, 2003, now pending. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10 / 352,981 is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10 / 133,339, filed Apr. 29, 2002, now pending, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09 / 947,078, filed Sep. 5, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,592,625, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09 / 484,706, filed Jan. 18, 2000, now abandoned, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60 / 160,710, filed Oct. 20, 1999. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10 / 352,981 is also a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10 / 075,615, filed on Feb. 15, 2002, now pending, and it also claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60 / 309,105, filed Jul. 31, 2001. The entire contents of each of the above are incorporated herein by reference.FIELD OF THE INVEN...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0019] Another advantage of the present invention over the prior art in utilizing the inner surface of the annulus is the reduction of the risk of having a portion of the device protruding from the exterior surface of the annulus. Device materials protruding from the exterior of the annulus pose a risk of damaging the nerve root and / or spinal canal which are in close proximity. Damage to these structures can result in continued pain, incontinence, bowel dysfunction, and paralysis.

[0020] The present invention also incorporates the concept of pulling the tissues together that surround the aperture, the inner surface, and the outer surface of the annulus to help increase the integrity of the repair.

[0021] An example of the technique and placement of the device according to the invention is as follows:

[0022] 1. An aperture is created measuring approximately, for example, 6 mm×2 mm in the wall of the annulus after performing a discectomy procedure in which a portion of the nucleus is also removed from the disc space, as shown in FIGS. 32a, 32b, 33a and 33b.

[0023] 2. Two or more sutures are passed through the upper and lower surfaces of the aperture and they are pushed within the intervertebral disc space to create a “sling” to receive the fascial autograft as shown for example in FIG. 34.

[0024] 3. A piece of para-spinal fascial tissue is removed from the patient measuring approximately, for example, 10 mm×5 mm.

Problems solved by technology

The nuclear material of the disc is toxic to the nerves and is believed to cause increased inflammation surrounding the nerves, which in turn can cause increased scar formation (adhesions or epidural fibrosis) upon healing.

Adhesions created around the nerve roots can cause continued back pain.

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