Ethicon, Gmbh

Marvin Alpern

Robert J Cerwin

Martin Sobel

Anthony Esteves

Robert A Daniele

Joseph Stanley Siernos

Konstantin K Ivanov

Michael S Pohle

Constance E Roshdy

Deborah M Transue

Robert J Kalinski

Teresa M Simons

Stephen George

Michael D O'Toole

Jack Cascio

Yufei Huang

Clifford A Dey

Emil Richard Skula

David D Demarest

William F Smith

Robert B Duncan

Joseph A Pergine

Delfin A Lorenzo Iglesias

Robert J Gibbs

Mario De Martin

Thomas F Genova

A suture package is disclosed that is sized and shaped to contain at least one suture. The suture package includes an envelope having a plurality of panels. One of the panels is a pressure panel which functions to urge a suture against another of the panels, thereby immobilizing the suture within the package.

Pillow-shaped suture package with pressure panel

A tray package is provided for sutures and needles. The tray package includes a base member which has top and bottom surfaces. A needle park bridge is formed on the top surface and is sized and shaped to receive a needle of a suture. A suture channel is formed on the bottom surface and is sized and shaped to receive a suture.

Large needle oval wound plastic suture package

A needle park and method of use of same, wherein a two-point contact, cantilevered member and opposite post member are provided to hold a needle between them, the post member being slit partially, such as perpendicular to or parallel to, the base on which the park sits. Such a slit allows the post member to partially collapse when a needle is inserted, allowing a greater variety of needle diameters to be used. Any curved needle is inserted in the separation between the members so that the needle curves around the post member and away from the two-point contact member.

Needle park and method of use

A horizontal, drop-feed dispenser box for unitary surgical suture packages. The package allows for bottom or top dispensing of suture packages.

Horizontal drop-feed, dispenser box

A package for sutures having a winding channel. The package has a base member and a cover member that is mounted to the base member. A plurality of cantilevered doors cover the winding channel.

Package for sutures

A method for making a suture package includes injection molding a shallow polymer tray for holding a suture. Fenestrations formed in a substantially flat floor area of the package cause the package to lay flat by interrupting material stresses set up by, e.g., differential cooling during injection molding.

Method for making fenestrated suture packages

A package for sutures having a winding channel. The package has a base member and a cover member that is mounted to the base member. A plurality of cantilieverd doors cover the winding channel.

A suture package comprising a needled suture or a non-needled suture, in the same folding retainer. The retainer comprises first and second suture-supporting panels hinged together along a common side edge; a cover panel hinged to each of the supporting panels along a common side edge; and a closing mechanism for releasably closing the panels together, folded about the hinges to retain a suture; one of the supporting panels and one of the cover panels including two separate access features providing access to either a needled or non-needled suture.

Multiple suture retainer and suture package

A folder package for surgical sutures. The package has a base panel, a foldably connected cover panel, a foldably connected closure panel, a foldably connected end panel, and a ramp structure. The package also has at least one ramp structure mounted to the base panel. The ramp structure allows sutures to pass over the park without getting hung-up on or in the park.

Double-armed suture package having ramped needle park

A suture package having a shallow polymer tray for holding an armed suture has a substantially flat floor area, an exterior surface of which defines at least a portion of a rear surface of the package. A front cover forms a front surface of the package and a needle park is disposed on the floor area for holding a surgical needle of the armed suture. The floor area has a window therethrough proximate the needle park. The front cover terminates proximate the needle park to provide an access opening to the needle. The window and the access opening permit the needle to be grasped by a needle holder and to be withdrawn from the package. Because the package has an opening on both the front and rear surfaces for viewing and removing the needle, curved needles may be stored therein in a conventional orientation, i.e., to serve right-handed physicians while at the same time accommodating dispensing from the rear to provide a suitable needle orientation for use by left-handed surgeons.

Armed suture package with universal dispensing capability

A suture package having a shallow polymer tray for holding a suture. The package has a substantially flat floor area, an upturned edge and a plurality of fenestrations therein. The fenestrations cause the package to lay flat by interrupting material stresses set up by, e.g., differential cooling during injection molding. The flatness of the package promotes automated package handling by machines. The fenestrations also save on material usage and disposal while providing the necessary structural integrity for the package.

Fenestrated suture package

Suture dispensers for retaining armed sutures are disclosed. The dispenser disclosed is comprised of two flat panels of material that each have a central opening. A needle park is provided so that the needle is visible in and accessible though the central openings. In preferred embodiments, the needle park is made of a thin sheet of clear material. Several alternate needle park designs are also disclosed. The two panels are preferably locked together using edge locks in the form of corresponding slits and tabs formed on the panels themselves. In addition to being inexpensive, easy to manufacture and easy to fill, the disclosed dispensers is much thinner than current designs and thus requires less storage and shipping space. Methods of loading dispensers are also disclosed. By winding the suture material in a flat spiral around a set of winding pins, the disclosed dispensers can be easily and accurately filled, yet the resulting coiled suture can be withdrawn via the central openings without twisting or kinking the suture material. In certain embodiments pressure on the central portion of the panels permits winding a spiral without the need for a central winding core. In other embodiments, pins are used to both align the panels and provide a winding guide for the suture material.

Suture dispenser

A suture package having a base member, an upwardly extending outer wall about the periphery of the base member, a plurality of grooves in the base member for receiving a suture, and a top lid member. The package has a central needle park and a discharge opening in the lid member for removing a needle and suture from the package. The package may alternatively have spoke members and rib members extending up from the base member containing grooves which form a suture channel for receiving a suture.

Suture tray package having grooved winding surface

Suture dispensers for retaining armed sutures are disclosed. The dispenser disclosed is comprised of two flat panels of material that each have a central opening. A needle park is provided so that the needle is visible in and accessible though the central openings. In preferred embodiments, the needle park is made of a thin sheet of clear material. Several alternate needle park designs are also disclosed. The two panels are preferably locked together using edge locks in the form of corresponding slits and tabs formed on the panels themselves. In addition to being inexpensive, easy to manufacture and easy to fill, the disclosed dispensers is much thinner than current designs and thus requires less storage and shipping space. Methods of loading dispensers are also disclosed. By winding the suture material in a flat spiral around a set of winding pins, the disclosed dispensers can be easily and accurately filled, yet the resulting coiled suture can be withdrawn via the central openings without twisting or kinking the suture material. In certain embodiments pressure on the central portion of the panels permits winding a spiral without the need for a central winding core. In other embodiments, pins are used to both align the panels and provide a winding guide for the suture material. A suture winding apparatus is also disclosed. The winding apparatus has upper and lower plates and a base member. A pair of opposed arcuate members extends downwardly from the lower plate.

Growing community of inventors

Glen Ridge, NJ, United States of America

Marvin Alpern