Fox Tapered Reamer

Standard length of tip 40mm
Designed by Richard Fox, MD
The reamer is used in the thoracolumbar pedicle in preparation for pedicle screw placement. The standard length of tip is 40mm with the shoulder of the instrument providing a positive depth stop for safety. The reamer is held using just two fingers and the thumb gripping the handle. The reamer is introduced down the pedicle in a back and forth rotational movement of quarter turns, keeping a straight axis of rotation, avoiding precession and keeping the tip loose so that it conveys tactile feedback to the surgeon. The handle is intentionally heavy in order to back-weight the instrument, giving excellent control at the tip, and requiring very little vertical pressure in the correct trajectory. In the setting of sacral screw fixation where perforation of the hard cortical bone is desired prior to screw placement, the reamer can be safely struck on the back of the handle with a mallet to advance it the last few millimeters.