Dental implant and method for using the same

Claim 1

A dental implant comprising an elongated tubular body having an elongated outer portion to be exposed beyond a bone bore and an elongated inner portion to be situated within a bone bore, said outer portion of said body being of a lesser cross sectional area and centrally situated with respect to said inner portion thereof and joined thereto by a shoulder of said tubular body, said body including a pair of spreadable extensions fixed to and extending beyond said inner portion of said body and respectively situated on opposite sides of an elongated central axis of said tubular body, said extensions having exterior Projections extending substantially radially with respect to said axis and respectively having inner surfaces extending longitudinally with respect to said axis and directed toward each other, elongated one-piece spreader means situated within said elongated tubular body and consisting of a shank terminating at its bottom in a wedge-shaped spreader end portion integral with said shank and situated between said extensions for spreading the latter apart from each other to press said exterior projections into the bone at the bore thereof during movement of said spreader means through said tubular body and outwardly beyond said outer portion thereof while leaving beneath said spreader end portion a free, unobstructed space between said extensions into which bone tissue can grow, the size of the latter space along said axis being determined by the extent to which said shank of said spreader means is drawn out through said outer portion of said tubular body, and pulling means engaging said body at said outer portion thereof and coacting with said shank of said spreader means for pulling the latter through said tubular body outwardly beyond said outer portion thereof, so that after said spreader means has been pulled to a given extent outwardly beyond said body a portion of said shank of said spreader means extending beyond said pulling means can be removed, said pulling means maintaining said spreader means at the location with respect to said tubular body to which it has been pulled for spreading said extensions apart from each other and said pulling means together with said outer portion of said tubular body forming an anchoring means for anchoring an artificial tooth on said body at the bone, said outer portion of said tubular body terminating in an outer end face and said pulling means engaging said outer end face and forming an extension of said outer portion of said tubular body, said elongated spreader means having a threaded shank and said pulling means being in the form of a nut threaded onto said shank for pulling said spreader means in response to turning of said nut, said outer portion of said tubular body having an exterior surface of non-circular cross section and said nut having an exterior surface of a non-circular cross section matching that of said outer portion of said tubular body so that said nut can be turned to a position where it will form an extension of said outer portion which is of the same cross section as the latter, said inner surfaces of said extensions being inclined with respect to each other and said spreader end portion having opposed inclined surfaces of the same general inclination as said inner surfaces of said extensions.

Claim 8

A method of securing an implant in a bone bore comprising the steps of first drilling in bone a bore of a diameter slightly less than that of the implant, said implant comprising an elongated tubular body having an elongated outer portion to be exposed beyond the bone bore and an elongated inner portion to be situated within the bone bore, said outer portion of said body being of a lesser cross sectional Area and being centrally situated with respect to said inner portion thereof and being joined thereto by a shoulder of said tubular body, introducing the implant into the bore at said inner portion of said tubular body until said shoulder reaches said bore so that said outer portion of said tubular body is exposed beyond said bore, the implant having spreadable portions situated within the bore and said outer portion of said tubular body forming an anchoring portion situated beyond the bore, said implant having an axial bore through which a screw with a spreader end extends, said outer portion of said tubular body having a non-circular cross section, mounting a nut of the same cross section as said outer portion of said tubular body on the screw in a position forming an extension of the outer portion of said tubular body so that by turning the nut the screw can be pulled outwardly with part of the threaded shank extending beyond the nut while the spreadable portions are spread within the bore for securing the implant in the bone bore, terminating the turning of the nut when it is in a position of angular alignment with said outer portion of said tubular body, then removing that portion of the threaded shank which extends beyond the nut, and then anchoring an artificial tooth to the nut and the outer portion of the tubular body extending outwardly beyond the bore.

Claim 9

A method of securing an implant in a bone bore comprising the steps of first drilling in bone a bore of a diameter slightly less than that of the implant, said implant comprising an elongated tubular body having an elongated outer portion to be exposed beyond the bone bore and an elongated inner portion to be situated within the bone bore, said outer portion of said body being of a lesser cross sectional Area and being centrally situated with respect to said inner portion thereof and being joined thereto by a shoulder of said tubular body, introducing the implant into the bore at said inner portion of said tubular body until said shoulder reaches said bore so that said outer portion of said tubular body is exposed beyond said bore, the implant having spreadable portions situated within the bore and said outer portion of said tubular body forming an anchoring portion situated beyond the bore, said implant having an axial bore through which a screw with a spreader end extends, said outer portion of said tubular body having a non-circular cross section, mounting a nut of the same cross section as said outer portion of said tubular body on the screw in a position forming an extension of the outer portion of said tubular body so that by turning the nut the screw can be pulled outwardly with part of the threaded shank extending beyond the nut while the spreadable portions are spread within the bore for securing the implant in the bone bore, terminating the turning of the nut when it is in a position of angular alignment with said outer portion of said tubular body, then removing that portion of the threaded shank which extends beyond the nut, and then anchoring an artificial tooth to the nut and the outer portion of the tubular body extending outwardly beyond the bore.