an instrument for assisting in guiding a spinal connector or rod through one or more spinal implants placed in the spine includes a main assembly having the ability to accurately guide a rod through the implants by way of rotation and translation . by introducing the rod via rotation , the tip of the rod can be located very accurately deep in soft tissue for percutaneous applications . once inside the first implant , the rod tip can be advanced by translation and rotation to the next implant . the number of implants connected in this manner is only limited to the length and curvature of the rod introduced . however , an advantage to the instrument is the ability to handle multiple length rods of different curvatures by adjustments to the instrument .