Needle holding and manipulating instrument

Abstract

A needle clamp is used to clamp and manipulate a suturing needle having a given radius of curvature. The clamp includes a pair of opposed arms that have an open position for insertion of the needle and a closed or clamping position. The arms are rotatable together about a rotational axis, and the needle is held in a curved convex groove positioned from the rotational axis at a distance approximately equal to the radius of curvature of the needle, so that the needle rotates about its curvature. The replaceable clamp is held along the rotational axis by an instrument handle that includes opposed clamp-engaging members, with the clamp and instrument handle having mating projections and recesses. The instrument also includes a manipulator to rotate the clamp about the rotational axis. The needle clamp may be permanently affixed on the clamp-engaging members or may be releasibly engaged such that various different needle clamps may be interchangeably affixed on the instrument handle engaging members.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.