Method and apparatus for temporarily immobilizing a local area of tissue

A device for engaging an area of tissue comprising:

• an arm having a proximal end and a distal end;
• a cable extending through the arm, the cable having distal and proximal ends;
• a tissue-contacting assembly connected to the distal end of the cable, the tissue-contacting assembly having a rotatable condition in which the assembly is free to rotate relative to the arm, and a locked condition in which the assembly is locked in a position relative to the arm, the tissue-contacting assembly having at least one surface for engaging tissue;
• a cable tensioning mechanism connected to the proximal end of the cable and engaging the proximal end of the arm to pull the cable relative to the arm when the cable is tensioned to change the tissue-contacting assembly from the rotatable condition to the locked condition;
• and
• a clamp coupled to the proximal end of the arm for fixing the arm to a retractor, the clamp comprising a mount and a jaw defining a dovetail-shaped groove for receiving a retractor element, the jaw being spring biased relative to the mount to clamp the retractor element within the dovetail-shaped groove and being movable against the bias to release the retractor element, and a manually operable cam mechanism for locking the jaw relative to the mount.