A
catheter for delivering energy to a
surgical site is disclosed. The
catheter includes at a proximal end a
handle and at a distal end a probe. The
catheter includes at least one
energy delivery device and an activation element. The at least one
energy delivery device is located at the distal end of the catheter to deliver energy to portions of the
surgical site. The activation element is located at the distal end of the catheter, to transition the probe from a linear to a multi-dimensional shape, within the
surgical site. Methods for deploying the probe from the linear to multi-dimensional shape are disclosed.In another embodiment of the invention the catheter includes a
heating element fabricated on a substrate by photo-
etching to deliver
thermal energy to portions of the surgical site. In another embodiment of the invention the catheter includes an
energy delivery element, a tip and a blade. The energy delivery element is located at the distal end of the catheter to deliver energy to portions of the
intervertebral disc. The blade is positioned within a first lumen of the tip and is extensible beyond the tip, to
cut selected portions within the
intervertebral disc. In another embodiment of the invention a catheter includes both energy and
material transfer elements and an interface on the
handle thereof. The interface couples the energy delivery element and the
material transfer element to external devices for energy and
material transfer to and from the
intervertebral disc.