the present invention comprises intervertebral disc implants incorporating multi - chamber balloons of varying shape that inflate to a unified whole of various forms including regular and irregular oblate spheroids and coiled strings of balloons , any of which may be implanted in an anterior , anterior - lateral , or a posterior surgical procedure with minimal incisions . fig1 is a perspective view of the intervertebral disc implant 2 according to a first embodiment of the present invention . fig2 is a side view of the disc implant 2 of fig1 and fig3 is a cross sectional view of the disc implant 2 of fig1 . with combined reference to fig1 , 2 and 3 , a first embodiment of the present invention incorporates an upper , or superior , plate member 100 , and a lower , or inferior , plate member 102 , which are adapted to be secured to upper and lower vertebra , respectively , in a spinal column . a multi - component resilient member 103 ( fig3 ) is also provided , disposed between the upper and lower plate members 100 , 102 . it is to be noted that the reference to the plate members as upper and lower members is for the purpose of identifying these members in the drawings . it may well be possible that the positions of the two plate members can be reversed . each of upper and lower plate members 100 , 102 is provided with means for securement to the upper and lower vertebra ( not shown ). many types of securement means are known in the art , and could be used with the present invention . known means of securing the plate members 100 , 102 to the respective vertebra include the use of screws through the plate members and into the vertebral body or through tabs affixed to the plate members and into the vertebral body . also known are the use of fins and / or spikes affixed to the top and bottoms surfaces of the plate members for engagement with cooperative slots ( in the case fins ) or holes prepared in the vertebral body . some spikes may not require pre - prepared holes . for clarity no means of securement are depicted in the figures or further described herein as it is within the skill of practitioner &# 39 ; s of the art to utilize such means in conjunction with the present invention . plate members 100 , 102 may further have their bone - contacting surfaces manufactured and / or treated or modified to facilitate or improve bonding to the bone . again , several such approaches are known in the art and should be suitable for use with the present invention . upper and lower plate members 100 , 102 are respectively provided with interfitted ( telescoping ) sidewalls 110 , 120 extending inward ( toward one another ) from the opposing surfaces of the plate members to form a housing for seating and containing the resilient member 103 . the sidewalls 110 , 120 are of sufficient height to overlap one another when the balloon or resilient member 103 is fully expanded after implantation . one or both of the sidewalls 110 , 120 may be formed with a thicker portion 112 proximal to the plate from which is extends and a thinner distal end 114 for overlapping with the opposing sidewall . the transition from the proximal portion 112 to the distal portion 114 provides a positive stop 116 against which the distal end of the opposing sidewall my rest . the positive stop 116 provides a maximum limit that the intervertebral disc implant may articulate in a particular direction as a result of compression of the inner resilient member 103 . the maximum limit provided by the positive stop 116 may be the same in all directions as depicted in the embodiment of fig1 . alternately , the height of the proximal portion 112 may be varied about the circumference intervertebral disc implant 2 as depicted in fig6 to permit relatively more articulation in , for example , the sagital plane ( s ) than in the coronal plane ( c ). the height of the proximal portion setting the position of the positive stop 116 in the sagital plane ( h 2 ) is less than the height of the proximal portion setting the position of the positive stop 116 in the coronal plane ( h 1 ) such that greater movement of the upper and lower plate members 100 , 102 is permitted . such variation is height of the proximal portion 112 is preferable done through a continuous curve and may permit greater motion in one direction of a given plane than in another direction ( i . e . bending forward is permitted while bending backwards is not ). sidewalls 110 , 120 may be formed with annular rings 118 at their distal ends as depicted in fig3 b so as to interlocking and thereby preventing the upper and lower plate members from separating during articulation of the spine . as described above with respect to the positive stop 113 , the position of the rings may be varied about the circumference intervertebral disc implant 2 to permit relatively more articulation in one plane or direction over another . it should be observed that while the depicted embodiment shows the lower sidewall extending outside and over the distal end of the upper sidewall the intervertebral disc implant 2 could be constructed such that the distal end of the upper sidewall extends outside and over the lower sidewall with similar efficacy . sidewalls 110 , 120 may also be formed , as depicted in fig1 and 2 with a radial sequence of protruding guides 144 ( two are shown ) formed in the outer surface of the distal end of sidewall 110 . guides 144 are captured within vertical slots 146 in the sidewalls 120 of the opposing plate 102 . the protruding guides 144 slide along the vertical slots 146 and prevent relative rotation of the plates 100 , 102 , but permit a limited degree of pivoting flexion . slots 146 and guides 144 may be utilized in conjunction with or in place of annular rings 118 to also prevent separation of the upper and lower plate members 100 , 102 during articulation and to control the limits thereof . variation in the length of the slots 146 is used to control the limits of articulation . in a preferred embodiment four slot 146 and guide 144 pairs are implemented , one each at the cardinal points about the intervertebral disc implant 2 although more or less , including zero slots / guides may be used . additionally , walls 110 , 120 may be formed with a predetermined coefficient of friction on the overlapping portions in order to augment the resilient member 103 in controlling or restricting movement between the upper plate 100 and lower plate 102 . with reference to fig3 a , the upper plate member 100 preferably has a lower surface formed with a concave impression 132 that is complementary to the shape of the resilient member 103 . the lower plate member 102 is likewise preferably formed with a lower surface having a concave impression 142 that is similarly complementary to the shape of the resilient member . in a preferred embodiment upper and lower plate members 100 , 102 are circular in plan such that the space enclosed by the intervertebral disc implant 2 is substantially cylindrical although other forms are contemplated as described below . the space enclosed by intervertebral disc implant 2 is occupied by a resilient member 103 as depicted in fig4 . resilient member 103 is formed with a toroidal member 134 encircling a spherical member 136 that fits within a central aperture of the toroidal member 134 . the entire member 103 ( including both members 134 and 136 ) may be formed as an integral component or as two discrete components that are fitted together as suggested by fig3 a . the resilient member 103 may be made of any of a variety of known biocompatible resilient compounds such as silicone rubbers , polyether and polyester urethane , polymethyl methacrylate , polycarbonates and various other polymerizing resins or hydrogels having the desired elastic properties . further , the individual members 134 , 136 may each be selected from an elastomer having different elastic properties to achieve the desired operation of the intervertebral disc implant 2 as described blow . in a preferred embodiment resilient member 103 is formed as a multi - chamber balloon having a toroidal chamber 134 encircling a spherical chamber 136 . both chambers 134 , 136 are defined by expandable side walls made , for example , of silicone rubber . both chambers 134 , 136 may be inflated either before , or preferably , after implantation , chamber 134 inflating to establish the toroidal shape and chamber 136 inflating to create the spherical shape . in combination the inflated chambers of balloon 103 define an oblate spheroid shape which approximates the shape of the disc it is meant to replace . the chambers may be inflated with air ( or another gas ) or with any of a variety of liquid or viscous substances as well as curing resins to achieve the desired elastic properties as described . further , the toroidal chamber 134 and the spherical chamber 136 may each be inflated with different substances to achieve the desired operation . in use the resilient member is compressed within the intervertebral disc implant 2 by a retaining clip or similar so as to present a smaller overall height to ease insertion into the evacuated intervertebral space . after insertion the clip is removed to permit the resilient member to expand and the implant to return to its operative dimensions . where the resilient member is a balloon the balloon , the implant may be inserted with the balloon deflated with the chambers being inflated after the device is positioned . inflation may be accomplished by insertion of a syringe ( not shown ) through a port 119 in the surface of each chamber so as to inject a fluid or resin filler . the spherical member 136 when inflated seats itself within the opposing concave impressions 132 , 142 , in the upper plate member 100 and lower plate member 102 , respectively . in a preferred embodiment impressions 132 , 142 are formed with a slightly greater radius ( r 2 ) than the spherical member 136 to afford a limited degree of pivoting freedom for flexation . this way , the upper vertebrae may shift either laterally or in a front or rearward direction , relative to the lower vertebrae . this flexion is facilitated by the interfitted ( telescoping ) sidewalls 110 , 120 extending inward from the major surface of the plates 100 , 102 . the telescoping sidewalls 110 , 120 are free to slide together / apart as described . spherical chamber 136 acts a shock absorbing member with the shock absorbing ability a function of by the elastic properties of the chosen elastomer or balloon material and filler . as the spine is articulated , for example rotated forward in the sagital plane during daily use , the shoulders 141 , 144 of the upper and lower plate members 100 , 102 formed about the periphery of the concave impressions 132 , 142 , engage the surface of the torroidal chamber 134 . the elastic properties of the chosen elastomer or balloon material and filler of the torroidal chamber 134 determine the resistance of the implant 2 to this flexion . by choosing the relative and absolute elastic properties of the two resilient members the surgeon may customize the operational characteristics of the implant as both a shock absorber and an articulating joint to match the natural properties of patients original intervertebral disc and meet the needs of the patient . fig5 a is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of a resilient member fig5 b is a side view and fig5 c is a top view of this alternate embodiment . the resilient member 203 is formed with a double toroid member 236 , here encircling two spaced spherical chambers 234 , 238 that fit within spaced central apertures of the toroidal chamber 236 . while the term double torroid is used to describe the encircling member , it should be observed that the form need not be precisely a double torroid in the mathematical sense . rather , double torroid is herein defined to include the join of two closed loops in the same plane which may ultimately be an ellipse ( fig5 d ), ovoid or rounded rectangle ( fig5 e ) in plan view . as above , the resilient member 203 may be a balloon wherein the spherical chambers may be integrally formed components with the torroidal chamber 236 or each may be formed as a discrete component that is fitted together . the balloon members are constructed from similar materials and in a similar manner as the multi chamber balloon of the first embodiment of the present invention . the overall shape of the intervertebral disc implant 2 would , of course , no longer be cylindrical but rather would accommodate the form of resilient member 203 . it should be observed that intervertebral disc implant 2 , when formed to accommodate resilient member 203 , will have a major and minor axis whereas the first embodiment , being roughly cylindrical , was symmetrical about any axis . spherical chambers 234 , 238 , being arranged along the major axis provide relatively moor resistance to articulation and flexion about the minor axis such that the surgeon may selectively implant the device with the axis oriented to further provide variable resistance to articulation in one plane over another . fig8 depicts the device implanted in the interdiscal space with the major axis oriented in the coronal plane such that rotation in the sagital plane ( i . e . medial / dorsal bending ) is relatively easier than lateral bending . fig7 is a top perspective view of another alternative embodiment of a multi - chamber balloon 303 coiled into a helix . the balloon 303 is here formed with a plurality of spaced spherical chambers 334 connected by capillary conduits 336 and resembling a string of christmas lights or beads . in this case the entire balloon 303 ( all chambers 334 and conduits 336 ) are preferably formed as an integral component from , for example , silicone rubber . the interior of all chambers 334 and conduits 336 remain in fluid communication so that all chambers 334 may be inflated simultaneously via an end - conduit 336 having a self sealing port 19 . multi balloon chamber 303 may be incorporated into an intervertebral disc implant 2 in place of the resilient members 103 or 203 . alternately , where the nucleus pulpous has been evacuated from the intervertebral disc by the surgeon or otherwise dissipated due to time or injury but the annulus fibrosus remains substantially intact , the balloon 303 may be inserted directly into the void through an incision or break in the annulus fibrosus . once in place it may be inflated to replace the lost nucleus pulpous . in yet another alternate embodiment a similar procedure may be performed utilizing a balloon resilient member 203 such that the resilient member is inserted with the annulus fibrosus and inflated absent an intervertebral disc implant 2 . in all the foregoing embodiments , the balloons 103 , 203 and 303 may be inserted in a deflated state , and later inflated by hypodermic or other inflation pump to define their respective shapes . one skilled in the art should now understand that any variety of desired shapes my be established with the basic multi - chamber balloon concept , and such variations are considered to be within the scope and spirit of the present invention . once inflated , the implants 103 , 203 , 303 are capable of supporting the compressive and cyclic loads required of a natural disc . the size of each implant component ( in collapsed form ) is small enough that they may be inserted with minimal incisions . furthermore , the implant components can be inserted through the posterior of the spine . a posterior approach to the surgical site reduces the invasiveness of the procedure , and may often be performed by a single orthopedic surgeon or neurosurgeon without a need for a general surgeon , and thus substantially decreases the cost and complexity of the procedure . having now fully set forth the preferred embodiments and certain modifications of the concept underlying the present invention , various other embodiments as well as certain variations and modifications of the embodiments herein shown and described will obviously occur to those skilled in the art upon becoming familiar with said underlying concept . it is to be understood , therefore , that the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically set forth in the appended claims .
a multi - piece disc replacement implant device for replacing a disc removed by a discectomy including an upper plate member , a lower plate member , and an intermediate resilient member providing movement between the two plate members replicating the natural movement of the spine including flexion / extension , lateral bending , and , in some embodiments , rotation . the plate members are rigid and have orthogonal sidewalls forming an enclosure . the resilient member is an elastic solid or a multi - chamber balloon structure of fluid - filled sacks that collectively define a non - uniform shape such as an oblate spheroid , or a helically coiled string of beads . such an implant is capable of supporting the compressive and cyclic loads required of a natural disc . the upper and lower plate members are cooperatively formed to selectively limit the allowable range of motion in any given direction . alternate embodiments of the invention may be employed in conjunction with removal of the nucleus pulposus when removal of the annulus fibrosus is not required or desirable .