US Patent 11672558 Ultrasonic spinal surgery method

In a surgical method, an elongate probe is inserted into a spinal disc exemplarily into a nucleus pulposus thereof in a direction generally parallel to vertebral end faces adjacent to the spinal disc. During the inserting of the elongate probe, the probe is ultrasonically vibrated. Thereafter, while ultrasonically vibrating the elongate probe, one moves the elongate probe to sever a prismatic portion of the spinal disc including a prismatic section of the nucleus pulposus. The prismatic portion of the spinal disc is removed from a remaining portion of the spinal disc.