Surgery – Instruments – Forceps
Reexamination Certificate
2000-05-05
2001-07-17
Dawson, Glenn K. (Department: 3761)
Surgery
Instruments
Forceps
C606S001000, C600S201000, C600S101000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06261307
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to a methods and apparatus for endoscopic and open surgery and, more particularly, to various end effectors of a surgical device that are offset from an axis and methods of manipulating these end effectors.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Various steps are accomplished in both open surgery and endoscopic surgery. Generally the multiple steps require various operating instruments. “Open surgery” refers to surgery wherein the surgeon gains access to the surgical site by a relatively large incision and “endoscopic surgery” refers to minimally invasive surgery wherein the surgeon gains access to the surgical site via one or more portals through which endoscopes are introduced to view the surgical site and through which instruments having “end effectors”, such as forceps, cutters, needle holders, cauterizers, and the like, are introduced to the surgical site.
The performance of an endoscopic procedure typically involves creation of one or more puncture sites through a wall of an anatomical cavity using a penetrating instrument including an obturator, such as a trocar, disposed within a portal sleeve. After the penetrating instrument has penetrated into the anatomical cavity, the obturator is withdrawn leaving the sleeve in place to form a portal in the cavity wall for the introduction of instruments such as endoscopes, scissors, forceps, needle holders and the like into the anatomical cavity.
The various end effectors at the distal end of the instrument are manipulated by the surgeon using controls disposed at the proximal end of the instrument. Of course, it is desirable to move the end effectors through various paths, depending on the step being performed. Traditionally, this was accomplished by moving the entire end of the endoscopic instrument. However, recently it has been proposed to provide a plurality of end effectors on a single endoscopic instrument to minimize the number of puncture sites and thus reduce the risk and healing time associated with endoscopic surgery. See applicant's concurrently filed patent applications entitled “Suturing Instrument with Multiple Rotatably Mounted Offset End Effectors and Method of Using the Same” and “Surgical Instrument with Multiple Rotatably Mounted Offset Needle Holders and Method of Using the Same”, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
When a plurality of end effectors are incorporated into a single endoscopic device it is desirable to move the end effectors individually with respect to one another without necessarily moving the entire device. Also, even in single end effector devices, it is often desirable to move the end effector through a predetermined path, such as an arc or the like during an operative step, without repositioning the entire endoscopic device.
Of course, it is also generally desirable to minimize the size of each puncture site. Further, in order to permit operations on a wide range of tissue sizes, it is desirable to provide a wide range of relative movement between the end effectors. These objectives, minimal number/small size punctures and wide range of relative movement, are seemingly contradictory. Conventional devices have not achieved the above-noted objectives.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,582,617 discloses an endoscopic instrument having an end effector that can move from a position within the diameter of the barrel of the device to a position outside the diameter. However, this device must pivot about an axis that is transverse to the axis of the barrel and an axis that is coincident with the axis of the barrel and thus requires a complex movement and linkage to accomplish the disclosed functions. Accordingly, this device falls short of providing an end effector that can be utilized over a large working span for a wide range of applications.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to overcome the above-mentioned disadvantages of the prior art and to improve surgical instruments and methods of surgery including endoscopic surgery.
It is also an object of the invention to provide an endoscopic device having a large working span and a small insertion diameter.
Yet another object of the present invention is to minimize the number of puncture sites required for performing operative steps on anatomical tissue in an endoscopic procedure by conducting multiple procedures through a single puncture site with an instrument that is operable to move an end effector through a predetermined path to operate on anatomical tissue.
The present invention is generally characterized in an instrument for operating on anatomical tissue including a barrel, a shaft extending through the barrel and an end effector mounted on the shaft. The end effector is offset from the longitudinal axis of the shaft by a connecting member to permit the end effector to move through a path that is outside of the diametrical dimension of the barrel. During insertion, the end effector can be positioned within a diametrical dimension of the surgical instrument either by rotating the shaft or by drawing the shaft and the end effector into the barrel in an axial manner.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like parts in each of the several figures are identified by the same reference numerals.
REFERENCES:
patent: 919138 (1909-04-01), Drake et al.
patent: 1037864 (1912-09-01), Carlson et al.
patent: 1131163 (1915-03-01), Saunders et al.
patent: 1155378 (1915-10-01), Steedman
patent: 1449087 (1923-03-01), Bugbee
patent: 1822330 (1931-09-01), Ainslie
patent: 2213830 (1940-09-01), Anastasi
patent: 2580964 (1952-01-01), Skaller
patent: 2601564 (1952-06-01), Smith
patent: 2646045 (1953-07-01), Priestley
patent: 2959172 (1960-11-01), Held
patent: 3090386 (1963-05-01), Curtis
patent: 3139089 (1964-06-01), Schwerin
patent: 3349772 (1967-10-01), Rygg
patent: 3470875 (1969-10-01), Johnson
patent: 3842840 (1974-10-01), Schweizer
patent: 3946740 (1976-03-01), Bassett
patent: 4109658 (1978-08-01), Hughes
patent: 4164225 (1979-08-01), Johnson et al.
patent: 4257420 (1981-03-01), Terayama
patent: 4440171 (1984-04-01), Nomoto et al.
patent: 4557265 (1985-12-01), Andersson
patent: 4621640 (1986-11-01), Mulhollan et al.
patent: 4635638 (1987-01-01), Weintraub et al.
patent: 4935027 (1990-06-01), Yoon
patent: 5037433 (1991-08-01), Wilk et al.
patent: 5100421 (1992-03-01), Christoudias
patent: 5147373 (1992-09-01), Ferzli
patent: 5181919 (1993-01-01), Bergman et al.
patent: 5209741 (1993-05-01), Spaeth
patent: 5211650 (1993-05-01), Noda
patent: 5222508 (1993-06-01), Contarini
patent: 5234443 (1993-08-01), Phan et al.
patent: 5244948 (1993-09-01), Mulhaupt et al.
patent: 5261917 (1993-11-01), Hasson et al.
patent: 5281238 (1994-01-01), Chin et al.
patent: 5304185 (1994-04-01), Taylor
patent: 5305121 (1994-04-01), Moll
patent: 5308353 (1994-05-01), Beurrier
patent: 5320632 (1994-06-01), Heidmueller
patent: 5336230 (1994-08-01), Leichtling et al.
patent: 5336231 (1994-08-01), Adair
patent: 5356424 (1994-10-01), Buzerak et al.
patent: 5364408 (1994-11-01), Gordon
patent: 5364409 (1994-11-01), Kuwabara et al.
patent: 5374275 (1994-12-01), Bradley et al.
patent: 5376096 (1994-12-01), Foster
patent: 5389098 (1995-02-01), Tsuruta et al.
patent: 5389103 (1995-02-01), Melzer et al.
patent: 5395367 (1995-03-01), Wilk
patent: 5397325 (1995-03-01), Della Badia et al.
patent: 5403328 (1995-04-01), Shallman
patent: 5403329 (1995-04-01), Hinchcliffe
patent: 5437681 (1995-08-01), Meade et al.
patent: 5454823 (1995-10-01), Richardson et al.
patent: 5462561 (1995-10-01), Voda
patent: 5462562 (1995-10-01), Elkus
patent: 5468251 (1995-11-01), Buelna
patent: 5470338 (1995-11-01), Whitfield et al.
patent: 5474057 (1995-12-01), Makower et al.
patent: 5474568 (1995-12-01), Scott
patent: 5477794 (1995-12-01), Klundt
patent: 5478344 (1995-12-01), Stone et al.
patent: 5478345 (1995-12-01), Sto
Yoon InBae
Yoon Samuel C.
Blank Rome Comisky & McCauley LLP
Dawson Glenn K.
LandOfFree
Method of using surgical instrument with rotatably mounted... does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Method of using surgical instrument with rotatably mounted..., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Method of using surgical instrument with rotatably mounted... will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2510482