US 6,569,120 B1Granted

Seal assembly

AssigneeUnited States Surgical Corporation

InventorsDavid T. Green, Henry Bolanos, Salvatore Castro, Henry Sienkiewicz, Stephan A. DeFonzo, Douglas J. Cuny, Wayne P. Young

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Abstract

A valve assembly is provided for permitting the introduction of a surgical instrument into a patient's body while providing a substantial seal about the instrument. The valve assembly includes a sealing gasket assembly providing a fluid tight seal before instrument insertion, and is configured and dimensioned for accommodating an instrument and providing a substantial fluid tight seal after insertion of an instrument. The valve assembly may further include a deformable sealing member having a substantially central aperture for accommodating the instrument. The sealing member provides a substantial seal about the instrument when the instrument is passed therethrough impeding the egress of fluids and gasses through the valve assembly.

Claims14

Dependent claims

A seal assembly which comprises:

(a) a frame;
(b) at least one sealing gasket assembly constructed of a flexible material and mounted to said frame, the sealing gasket assembly including:
(i) a first sealing element defining a first semi-circular opening and having a first wall, and
(ii) a second sealing element defining a second semi-circular opening and having a second wall;
and
(c) at least one retainer element defining a substantially central aperture, said retainer element including a body portion and a plurality of adjacent movable portions joined to said body portion by hinge regions said adjacent movable portions being configured and dimensioned to inhibit contact between an instrument and said at least one sealing gasket assembly upon insertion of the instrument through the sealing gasket assembly, wherein said adjacent movable portions are each defined by a pair of slits extending radially at least partially between said adjacent movable portions from said substantially central aperture;
wherein mounting of the at least one sealing gasket assembly onto the frame tensions the first and second walls so that they overlap to define overlapping walls and form a substantial gas and fluid tight seal in the absence of the instrument inserted through the semi-circular openings;
and
further wherein the overlapping walls are separable so, as to allow passage of the instrument through the semi-circular openings.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 08/814,757Filed 7 Mar 1997 · continuation
Priority: 18 Oct 1991
Granted: 27 May 2003
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification21 codes

A61M 39/06
Access sites: haemostasis valves, i.e. gaskets sealing around a needle, catheter or the like, closing on removal thereof
A61B 17/34
Surgical instruments, devices or methods: trocars; Puncturing needles
A61M 25/04
Holding devices, e.g. on the body: in the body, e.g. expansible
F16K 15/1471
The closure elements having specially formed slits or being of an elongated easily collapsible form: slits arranged along multiple axes

Family

Application07/781,063Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 18 Oct 1991
Application07/873,416Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 24 Apr 1992
Application07/950,205Parent of this continuation · filed 23 Sep 1992
Application08/378,989Parent of this continuation · filed 24 Jan 1995
Application07/950,205Parent of this continuation-in-part
US 5,203,773 AParent of this continuation-in-part
US 6,569,120 B1This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.