referring to fig7 - 9 , a surgical device 1 for minimally invasive spinal surgery is illustrated , complete with all its parts . the surgical device 1 is mainly intended for performing posterolateral interbody fusion ; however it can also be employed in connection with other surgical techniques . the surgical device comprises a common frame 4 having a main bar 41 and two articulated arms 42 , 43 departing therefrom . two retractor blades 2 are mounted at the free ends of the articulated arms 42 , 43 . in the operative configuration shown in the figures , the common frame 4 holds the retractor blades 2 in a distanced relationship wherein the two blades face each other . in the following description , the sides of the blades 2 oriented toward each other will thus be named inner side , while the opposite sides will be named external sides . as will be apparent from the following description , the common frame 4 also enables various movements of the retractor blades 2 ; for instance the retractor blades 2 can be spread apart and tilted in order to perform their retracting function . as best seen in fig1 , the retractor blades 2 are symmetrically identical , and therefore the following general description fits both of them . a retractor blade 2 has a curved shape , featuring an convex inner side and an concave outer side , the latter being designed to press against the soft tissue of the patient during retraction . the retractor blade extends from a proximal end 21 which is attached to the free end of the respective articulated arms 42 , 43 , to a distal end 20 that is intended for insertion into the surgical incision . the distal end 20 is skewed with respect to the longitudinal extension of the retractor blade 2 . in the depicted embodiment , the dimension of the blade decreases towards the common frame 4 ; however , an alternative embodiment may feature blades skewed in the opposite direction , wherein the common frame 4 is placed laterally . this particular shape is meant to match the geometry of the vertebral lamina of the patient . the proximal end 21 has a reduced width , so as to cause the least possible amount of enlargement of the wound during skin retraction . the proximal end 21 features a final flange bending outwards and supporting a fixing peg 22 . the fixing peg 22 is meant to be releasably connected within a fixing hole at the free end of the articulated arm 42 , 43 . the inner side of the retractor blade 2 features a t - shaped longitudinal groove 24 , extending from the proximal end 21 to the distal end 20 and opening at both these ends . a sliding connector 30 bearing a connecting pin 3 , best seen in fig1 - 12 , may be inserted into the longitudinal groove in order to couple the connecting pin 3 to the retractor blade 2 . the sliding connector 30 has an elongated shape and substantially the same length as the retractor blade 2 . on its rear side , the sliding connector features two engaging teeth 33 , spaced apart along the longitudinal axis of the connector . the engaging teeth 33 are t - shaped and are meant to be slidingly inserted within the longitudinal groove 24 of the retractor blade 2 , creating the connection between the connector 30 and the blade 2 . at the proximal end , the sliding connector 30 features a thickened tail 32 meant for easy manipulation of the element . at the opposite distal end , the sliding connector 30 has a transversal hinge 34 that connects the connecting pin 3 . the connecting pin 3 is therefore allowed to rotate with respect to the sliding connector , in particular a rotation of ± 50 ° with respect to an orthogonal direction is allowed . it is noted that the elongated sliding connector 30 may be introduced in and extracted from the proximal end of the retractor blade 2 even during surgery , i . e . when the surgical device 1 is inserted into a patient &# 39 ; s body . however , other types of connection between the retractor blade 2 and the connecting pin 3 may be employed , for instance a simple slotted connection . the connecting pin 3 is a short pin ending in a retaining flange 31 , having an eccentric profile for reasons that will be apparent from the following description . the connecting pin 3 is meant to connect the retractor blade 2 to a standard pedicle screw 100 anchored to a patient vertebra . standard pedicle screws 100 have a u - shaped passage 101 on their head for the insertion of a connecting rod . when the connecting rod is not yet in place , the connecting pin 3 may be introduced into the u - shaped passage 101 and locked therein by means of a setscrew or a dummy setscrew 102 . the retaining flange 31 is located outside of the u - shaped passage 101 , so that it abuts on one side of the head , retaining the pedicle screw 100 in case it is subjected to pulling forces . when the two connecting pins 3 are respectively attached to two pedicle screws anchored to adjacent vertebrae of a patient , a diverging motion of the retractor blades 2 exerts a distraction on the vertebral bodies , so that the surgical device 1 acts as a distractor . it is observed , therefore , that in use the connecting pins are set on a main axis x that is cranial - caudal with respect to patient anatomy . as previously anticipated , the common frame enables relative motions of the retractor blades 2 . a first allowed motion is a relative displacement of the two retractor blades 2 along the main axis x , so as to spread apart the soft tissue of the patient and to pull the pedicle screws 100 away from each other when attached to the connecting pins 3 . the motion along the main axis x is due to the fact that one of the articulated arms 43 is fixed to the main rod 41 ( conveniently parallel to the main axis x ), while the other articulated arm 42 is moveable , by means of a linear actuator 40 , along the same rod 41 . the linear actuator 40 is a manually operated ratchet . in fact the main rod 41 has a linear rack 40 a that engages with a pinion ( not visible in the figures ) connected to a first portion 42 a of the moveable arm 42 . the pinion is solidly attached to a rotation tab 40 b that may be operated by the surgeon . a pawl 40 c , preventing backward motion of the moveable arm , may be released by finger pressure . apart from the feature of the linear actuator 40 , the articulated arms 42 , 43 are symmetrically identical , and therefore the following general description of the moveable arm 42 also applies , mutatis mutandis , to the fixed arm 43 . the arm comprises a first portion 42 a ( respectively 43 a ), a second portion 42 b ( 43 b ) and a third portion 42 c ( 43 c ). the first portion 42 a , extending from the main rod 41 , is hinged to the second portion 42 b about a first hinging axis y , parallel to the main axis x . an angular ratchet 44 , the mechanism of which is covered by an external casing solid with the first portion 42 a , blocks the angular movement of the second portion away from the distal end of the retracting blades 2 , i . e . it prevents a displacement of the blades away from the surgical site . a push button 44 a is provided for disengaging the pawl of the ratcheting mechanism to allow the backward rotation . as best seen in fig6 , the rotation about the first hinging axis y allows a more comfortable positioning of the common frame 4 on the body of the patient . the third portion 42 c of the articulated area is a lever intermediately hinged at the free end of the second portion 42 b about a second hinging axis z , parallel to the longitudinal extension of the second arm portion 42 b and therefore orthogonal to the main axis x . one end of the lever lies above a protruding support 45 a of the second arm portion 42 b ; the opposite end of the lever extends toward the opposite articulated arm and features the fixing hole meant to house the fixing peg 22 of the retractor blade 2 . the adjustment about the second hinging axis z is provided by an adjustment screw 45 . a tip of the screw 45 is freely rotatable within the protruding support 45 a , while the shank of the screw 45 is threadingly engaged in a through - hole of the lever end above . the adjustment screw 45 can easily be operated by the surgeon thanks to a rotation tab 45 b attached to its head . as best seen in fig5 , the rotation about the second hinging axis z adjusts the inclination of the corresponding blade 2 . moreover , the orthogonal disposition of the articulated arms 42 , 43 along the axis z orthogonal to the main axis x allows to have a large central passage for other instrumentation , for instance a soft tissue retractor device . in fact according the present invention the main rod 41 is not aligned to the blade 2 but it remains always in a backward position with respect to the retractor blades ( 2 ). on the contrary us2006 / 0247645 discloses a simple screw to screw distractor without any soft tissue retractor feature . therefore the us2006 / 0247645 device can work for open surgeries only and not also in mini - open / mis surgery due the lack of enough space for other instruments . as previously said , the surgical device 1 is intended to be used in minimally open surgical procedures in combination with the insertion of a posterior fixation system of the spine , i . e . pedicle screws 100 with a connecting rod . the retractor blades 2 can be placed directly after the skin incision is made and dilated , by sliding them over the dilator tube employed in the previous surgical step . alternatively , the pedicle screws 2 can be placed prior the application of retractor blades 2 and common frame 4 , by percutaneous instruments or dilation tubes . in this case , as best seen in fig1 - 15 , the pedicle screw 100 is coupled to a percutaneous tower 150 . the retractor blade 2 , together with its connecting pin 3 , may be slid over the percutaneous tower 150 according to the following steps . it is noted that the percutaneous tower 150 features a longitudinal side opening 151 meant to allow the subsequent positioning of the connecting rod . the side opening connects with the u - shaped passage 101 of the pedicle screw 100 . in a first step depicted in fig1 , the retractor blade 2 is angled at 90 ° with respect to the percutaneous tower , so that the eccentric profile of the retaining flange 31 may enter the side opening 151 . in a second step depicted in fig1 , the retractor blade 2 is aligned with the percutaneous tower 150 and slid over it until the connecting pin 3 reaches the u - shaped passage 101 . in a third step , the connecting pin 3 is locked into the u - shaped passage 101 by means of a setscrew or a dummy setscrew 102 delivered through the percutaneous tower 150 . finally , the percutaneous tower 150 is removed , the retractor blades 2 are fixed to the common frame 4 , and the distraction of the vertebrae is performed by means of the linear actuator 40 . alternatively , the distraction may be applied while the percutaneous tubes are still fixed to the pedicle screws . obviously a person skilled in the art , in order to meet specific needs , will readily acknowledge the possibility of changes and variations to the surgical device described above , comprised within the scope of protection as defined by the following claims .
a surgical device is disclosed which may advantageously perform the functions of both a retractor and a distractor . the device has two retractor blades facing each other and held in a common frame , the retractor blades are insertable into a surgical incision in a patient and moveable away from each other along a main axis so as to widen the surgical incision ; and a connecting pin attached at a distal end of each retractor blade . each connecting pin is attachable to a pedicle screw anchored to respective vertebrae of the patient , so that moving away the two retractor blades along the main axis determines a distraction of the vertebrae .