The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 22, 1998
Filed:
Aug. 29, 1996
Mark A Ritchart, Murrieta, CA (US);
Minh Tran, Westminster, CA (US);
Mark Cole, Santa Ana, CA (US);
Fred H Burbank, San Juan Capistrano, CA (US);
Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Cincinnati, OH (US);
Abstract
This invention provides an inventive tissue sampling probe which offers many advantages over probes available in the prior art. Unexpectedly superior results are obtained in connection with the retrieval of intact tissue specimens, because of a unique combination of cutting features, including, for example, the employment of an electrosurgical cutting element and a vacuum assist in one preferred embodiment. A particularly important feature of the invention is the ability to manipulate the electrosurgical cutting element to cleanly sever the distal end of the tissue specimen. In certain embodiments, this is accomplished without any cutting impact on surrounding tissue. The versatility of the invention permits its use in many applications, including, for example, breast biopsies, laparoscopic surgery, and lymphadenectomy procedures.