Bipolar electrosurgical instrument

Abstract

An electrosurgical instrument having a first electrode that includes an elongated, electrically conductive member and a second electrode that includes a layer of electrically conductive material adhered over at least a portion of a distal region of the elongated member and separated therefrom by an insulator. The electrodes receive electrical power in a proximal region of the instrument and apply the power to an object in the body by inducing current flow between the electrodes at the distal region. In a related aspect, the second electrode is configured so that the outer diameter of the distal region is substantially the same as the outer diameter of the distal end of the first electrode. In another aspect, one of the electrodes has a reduced circumferential extent relative to the other electrode to limit an area of current flow between the electrodes and thus restrict the size of the region in which cauterization occurs. Still another aspect of the invention features a process for fabricating the electrode assembly.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.