Spinal implant

Abstract

A spinal implant with associated surgical tools, tool sets and methods for percutaneously accessing and preparing treatment sites within the spine for subsequent treatment procedures. The treatment site may be an inter-vertebral motion segments in the lumbar and sacral regions of the spine. The tool set may comprise introducer tools and bone dilators for accessing and tapping into a targeted site, such as, for example, the anterior surface of the S1 vertebral body. The tool set may also comprise cutters and extractors for preparing the treatment site for subsequent treatment procedures. The tool set may additionally comprise a bone graft inserter, an exchange system, and/or a temporary distraction tool for further preparing the treatment site for subsequent treatment procedures.

1 . An axially-extending implantable rod for extending between two adjacent vertebral bodies in a spine, said rod comprising:
 a distal piece that has a first external thread on an external surface of the distal portion for directly engaging with a first vertebral body;   a proximal piece that has a second external thread on an external surface of the proximal piece for directly engaging a second vertebral body;   an internal bore extending from the distal piece and through the proximal piece portion; and   an intermediate member positioned within the internal bore extending between the distal piece and the second piece, the intermediate member coupling the first and second pieces together.