Zero profile small stature pedicle screw assembly and associated method of use

1 . A pedicle screw assembly, comprising:

at least one head fixation assembly having an upper body and a lower body with an opening in a bottom portion of the lower body;

at least one bone screw positioned between the upper body and the lower body of the head fixation assembly that extends outward from the opening in the bottom portion of the lower body;

at least one lateral interconnecting member to stabilize at least one bone in a patient, wherein the at least one head fixation assembly is transversely attached to the at least one lateral interconnecting member; and

at least one securing mechanism to lock the upper body to the lower body to prevent polyaxial motion and translation along the at least one interconnecting member,

wherein the at least one interconnecting member includes both a first plate and a second plate positioned in parallel on each side of the head fixation assembly with the upper body of the head fixation assembly includes an upward extending prong that interconnects into a downward facing upper groove in the first lateral plate and a downward facing upper groove in the second lateral plate and the lower body of the head fixation assembly includes a downward extending prong that interconnects into an upward facing lower groove in the first lateral plate and an upwardly facing lower groove in the second lateral plate.

2 . The pedicle screw assembly according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one lateral interconnecting member is a lateral plate.

3 . The pedicle screw assembly according to claim 2 , wherein the upper body of the head fixation assembly includes an upward extending prong that interconnects into a downward facing upper groove in the lateral plate, and the lower body of the head fixation assembly includes a downward extending prong that interconnects into an upward facing lower groove in the lateral plate.

4 . The pedicle screw assembly according to claim 1 , further comprising a modular clip that secures the bone screw within the lower body of the head fixation assembly.

5 . The pedicle screw assembly according to claim 1 , wherein the securing mechanism includes a locking bolt that connects the upper body to the lower body of the head fixation assembly.

6 . The pedicle screw assembly according to claim 1 , wherein the securing mechanism includes a locking screw that engages the upper body of the head fixation assembly.

7 . The pedicle screw assembly according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one interconnecting member having a cylindrical opening and the upper body of the head fixation assembly includes an upper half circle dovetail prong that interconnects into the cylindrical opening of the interconnecting member and the lower body of the head fixation assembly includes a lower half circle dovetail prong that interconnects into the cylindrical opening of the interconnecting member and allows angulation of the interconnecting member.

8 . The pedicle screw assembly according to claim 7 , wherein the interconnecting member is c shaped.

9 . A method of installing a pedicle screw assembly, the method comprising:

at least partially inserting the at least one bone screw into a bone of the patient with the at least one screw extender instrument;

attaching a head fixation assembly to the at least one screwdriver instrument and inserting the head fixation assembly over the at least one bone screw;

attaching at least one lateral interconnecting member to the head fixation assembly, wherein the at least one interconnecting member includes both a first plate and a second plate positioned in parallel on each side of the head fixation assembly with the upper body of the head fixation assembly includes an upward extending prong that interconnects into a downward facing upper groove in the first lateral plate and a downward facing upper groove in the second lateral plate and the lower body of the head fixation assembly includes a downward extending prong that interconnects into an upward facing lower groove in the first lateral plate and an upwardly facing lower groove in the second lateral plate;

further reducing the at least one bone screw into the head fixation assembly with the at least one screwdriver instrument; and

connecting a securing mechanism to lock an upper body of the head fixation assembly to the lower body of the head fixation assembly to prevent polyaxial motion and translation along the at least one interconnecting member.

10 . The method of installing a pedicle screw assembly according to claim 9 , wherein the at least one lateral interconnecting member is a lateral plate, and the upper body of the head fixation assembly includes an upward extending prong that interconnects into a downward-facing upper groove in the lateral plate, and the lower body of the head fixation assembly includes a downward extending prong that interconnects into an upward facing lower groove in the lateral plate.

11 . The method of installing a pedicle screw assembly according to claim 9 , wherein the at least one interconnecting member includes both a first plate and a second plate positioned in parallel on each side of the head fixation assembly with the upper body of the head fixation assembly includes an upward extending prong that interconnects into a downward facing upper groove in the first lateral plate and a downward facing upper groove in the second lateral plate and the lower body of the head fixation assembly includes a downward extending prong that interconnects into an upward facing lower groove in the first lateral plate and an upwardly facing lower groove in the second lateral plate.

12 . The method of installing a pedicle screw assembly according to claim 9 , wherein the at least one lateral interconnecting member having a cylindrical opening and the upper body of the head fixation assembly includes an upper half circle dovetail prong that interconnects into the cylindrical opening of the lateral interconnecting member and the lower body of the head fixation assembly includes a lower half circle dovetail prong that interconnects into the cylindrical opening of the lateral interconnecting member and allows angulation of the lateral interconnecting member.

13 . The method of installing a pedicle screw assembly according to claim 9 , wherein the at least one bone screw that includes both a first bone screw and a second bone screw, and the at least one screw extender instrument that includes both a first navigatable screwdriver instrument and a second navigatable screwdriver instrument, wherein each navigatable screwdriver instrument includes a two marker array with fiducial markers aligned along a central axis of the applicable bone screw for navigated and/or robotic screw placement, wherein once the first and second bone screws have been placed, the first and second screwdriver instruments continue to track the location and orientation of a patient's bone using the location and orientation of the placed first and second bone screws.

14 . The method of installing a pedicle screw assembly according to claim 13 , wherein at least one of the first and second navigatable screwdriver instruments function as a local dynamic reference base, thereby improving navigation integrity.

15 . The method of installing a pedicle screw assembly according to claim 13 , the orientation of the central axes of the bone screws and first and second navigatable screwdriver instruments are recorded at an initial position with vectors defining the central axes of the navigatable screw extender instruments are then calculated.

16 . The method of installing a pedicle screw assembly according to claim 13 , wherein the orientation and position of the central axes of the first and second bone screws are recorded at an initial position with locations of the fiducial markers modeled by calculating their distance along the central axes of the first and second screw extenders defining an array to be tracked and recognized.