Vessel sealer with slot for removal of debris
AssigneeConmed Corporation
InventorAaron Szabo
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A surgical instrument that will automatically clear any debris from a knife pathway in response to normal operation of the knife. The instrument has a pair of jaws formed from a first jaw member and a second jaw member that are pivotally mounted with respect to each other for movement between an open position and a closed position. The jaw members support sealing surfaces that have tracks formed therein to define a knife pathway for a knife blade used to sever sealed tissue that is trapped in the jaws. Each jaw member has a slot aligned with the distal end of the track to provide a point of egress for debris that accumulates in the knife track. As the knife is advanced along the knife pathway during normal operation, any debris will be driven toward the distal end of the knife pathway and out of the slots.
Claims14
A surgical instrument, comprising:
- a pair of jaws having a first jaw member and a second jaw member that are pivotally mounted with respect to each other for movement between an open position and a closed position;
- a first sealing surface supported by the first jaw member and having a first track formed therein that extends from a first open end to a first closed end;
- a second sealing surface supported by the second jaw member and having a second track formed therein that extends from a second open end to a second closed end and that will align with the first track when the pair of jaws are in the closed position to define a knife pathway;
- a first slow formed in a first distal end of the first jaw member that extends from a first tip of the first jaw member to penetrate through the first closed end of the first track so that the first slot is in communication with the first track;
- and
- a second slot formed in a second distal end of the second jaw that extends from a second tip of the second jaw member to penetrate through the second closed end of the second track so that the second slot is in communication with the second track.
A method of clearing debris from a surgical instrument, comprising:
- providing a vessel sealer including pair of jaws formed by a first jaw member having a first sealing surface with a first track having a first closed end and a first slot formed in a first distal end of the first jaw member that extends from a first tip of the first jaw member to penetrate through the closed end of the first track to be in communication with the first track and a second jaw member having a second sealing surface with a second track having a second closed end and a second slot formed in a second distal end of the second jaw member that extends from a second tip of the second jaw member to penetrate through the closed end of the first track to be in communication with the second track;
- and
- extending a knife blade within the first track and the second track to push any debris out of the first slot and the second slot.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.