Abstract: Spinal implants and methods for spinal stabilization and/or fusion are provided. Exemplary implants described herein can be configured for delivery to a facet joint to stabilize and/or fuse the facet joint, and can optionally be anchored within the pedicle for added fixation. The implant can optionally include a fusion-promoting bioactive material thereby providing a single device capable of spinal stabilization and/or fusion. Furthermore, a method of placing such an implant within a facet joint is provided.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a medical implant comprising a radiopaque marker is described. The method comprises manufacturing a medical implant using stereolithography, wherein the medical implant has an external surface that delimits an opening to a channel. A curable mixture of a biocompatible polymer and a radiopaque material is then inserted into the channel while in a liquid state and cured in the channel so that it solidifies in the channel. The combination of an implant manufactured by stereolithography and a radiopaque marker which is inserted into the channel in a liquid state enables complex internal structures to be formed in the implant for the radiopaque marker and for the marker to take on those complex forms more easily. This allows a better visualisation of the marker under X-Ray or other medical imaging technique.

Abstract: Spinal implants and methods for spinal stabilization and/or fusion are provided. Exemplary implants described herein can be configured for delivery to a facet joint to stabilize and/or fuse the facet joint, and can optionally be anchored within the pedicle for added fixation. The implant can optionally include a fusion-promoting bioactive material thereby providing a single device capable of spinal stabilization and/or fusion. Furthermore, a method of placing such an implant within a facet joint is provided.