Ethicon Endo-surgery, Inc.

Ethicon, Gmbh

Peter Lau

John R Bittner

Stephen J Failla

Roger L Hildwein

David H Ruder

Thomas H Graves, Jr

Trevor W Speeg

William G Bowser

W G Bowser

A surgical tissue fastening device for fastening and transecting tissue includes a handle having a cartridge assembly connected the handle. The cartridge assembly includes a cartridge containing a plurality of surgical fasteners. An anvil assembly is connected to the handle and includes an anvil surface that is positionable adjacent the cartridge. The anvil surface receives and forms the fasteners ejected from the cartridge upon firing of the instrument. Tissue that is desired to be fastened and transected is placed between the anvil and the cartridge. The instrument also includes a knife blade which is movable between the cartridge and the anvil for cutting the tissue. The knife blade has a knife edge having a plurality of pairs of cutting tips for piercing the tissue and a notch located between each pair of cutting tips for capturing foreign objects, such as staples, in the notch. An actuator assembly is operatively connected to the cartridge assembly and the knife blade for ejecting the fasteners from the cartridge to the anvil surface and for advancing the knife blade through the tissue for transecting the tissue between the cartridge and the anvil.

Surgical cutting instrument with improved cutting edge

An improved surgical instrument cartridge and method for manufacturing thereof includes providing a cartridge comprising a housing including a surface member and a pair of sidewalls spaced a distance apart from each and connected to the surface member. At least one of the sidewalls has a plurality of slots arranged therein. The slotted sidewall is then deflected such that a plurality of drivers can be placed adjacent the deflected sidewall. Each driver has a tab extending laterally therefrom. The driver tab is inserted directly into the sidewall slot such that each tab is movably confined within each slot and the driver is movable with respect to the slotted sidewalls.

Disposable cartridge with drivers

A surgical stapler for effecting simultaneous cutting and stapling of tissue includes a frame and a staple cartridge positionable in the frame. The stapler includes a knife blade mounted for movement distally of the staple cartridge, with the cartridge including a rotatable member which cooperates with the knife blade for preventing use of the stapler unless it is fitted with a fresh, unused staple cartridge. The rotatable member on the staple cartridge is configured to facilitate convenient and efficient use of the stapler by reducing the force required for operation of the device.

Surgical stapler with locking mechanism

An applier for applying a bulldog clamp endoscopically, and the combination of such an applier with a bulldog clamp, is disclosed. The applier has an endoscopic portion and a handle portion. The handle portion can be manipulated to open and close gripping arms of the applier at the distal end of the endoscopic portion to correspondingly open and close the clamping jaws of the bulldog clamp. The principle feature of the invention is the ability to pivot the clamp while it is gripped within the gripping arms of the applier without the necessity of using another instrument or adjacent bodily tissue. Furthermore, it is possible to perform this pivoting movement from the proximal end of the applier, therefore enabling a surgeon to pivot the clamp from outside the body during endoscopic surgery. The preferred means for achieving pivoting movement includes the combination of a cantilevered spring mounted on one of the arms of the applier which biases the clamp off center from the longitudinal axis of the applier, and a guiding tube fitted over the endoscopic portion for steering the off-centered clamp. This steering function can be performed when the steering tube is moved distally to contact the clamp. The surgeon can then control the degree of pivoting movement by controlling the degree to which he advances the steering tube against the clamp.

Growing community of inventors

Cincinnati, OH, United States of America

Peter Lau