Instrument for ligation and castration

An instrument for placing a ligature on a tubular vessel and for severing the tubular vessel and associated structures, the instrument comprising:

• a pistol-shaped body forming a barrel and a grip, wherein the barrel has a muzzle with a muzzle opening therethrough for receiving tubular vessels and the body is formed with a cavity extending from the muzzle opening through the barrel and into the grip;
• a trigger operatively connected to the body, wherein the trigger includes a trigger rod extending from the trigger through the grip and into the cavity;
• a yoke mounted at a medial pivot point thereof within the cavity and having a trigger end and a ligating end, wherein the trigger end is pivotally connected tot he end of the trigger rod extending into the cavity;
• a ligature driver connected to the ligating end of the yoke and slidingly disposed along the upper length of the barrel, the ligature driver adapted to move toward the muzzle and back in response to the pivoting movement of the yoke;
• a pair of ligature compressors attached to the barrel on opposing sides of the muzzle opening with a space between the ligature compressors, the space between the ligature compressors narrowing toward the muzzle of the barrel to compress a ligature around a tubular vessel positioned in the muzzle opening as the ligature driver pushes the ligature toward the muzzle between the ligature compressors;
• a blade driver pivotally attached to the yoke at a point between the ligating end and the pivot point of the yoke, the blade driver having a muzzle end extending into the barrel and moving lengthwise within the barrel toward the muzzle and back in response to the pivoting movement of the yoke;
• and
• a blade attached to the muzzle end of the blade driver and adapted to move into the muzzle opening to sever a tubular vessel positioned within the muzzle opening when the blade driver moves toward the muzzle.