Medical instrument and method for manufacturing the same

A method for manufacturing a medical instrument having at least one distal jaw portion with a hardened gripping and/or cutting surface, the method comprising the steps of:

• A. providing the at least one distal jaw portion;
• and
• B. hardening at least one region of the at least one distal jaw portion by:
• i. providing a thermal spray device configured for high velocity oxygen fuel spraying;
• ii. feeding a coating material through the thermal spray device to produce particles of the coating material;
• and
• iii. impinging the particles of the coating material on the at least one region of the at least one distal jaw portion to produce a layer of coating material, thereby creating the hardened gripping and/or cutting surface,
• the coating material being selected from the group consisting of metals, metal alloys and cermets.