Instruments, systems, and methods for sealing tissue structures

A method of sealing bowel tissue, comprising:

• grasping bowel tissue between first and second electrically-conductive surfaces;
• applying a clamping pressure to the grasped bowel tissue in a in a range of about 1 kg/cm2 to about 2.5 kg/cm2;
• supplying energy to at least one of the first and second electrically-conductive surfaces such that the energy is conducted between the first and second electrically-conductive surfaces and through the grasped bowel tissue;
• monitoring a temperature of the grasped bowel tissue during the supplying of energy to the at least one of the first and second electrically-conductive surfaces;
• and
• controlling the supply of energy to the at least one of the first and second electrically-conductive surfaces to maintain the temperature of the grasped bowel tissue between a lower temperature limit, corresponding to a minimum temperature for sealing bowel tissue, and an upper temperature limit, corresponding to a maximum temperature prior to occurrence of bowel tissue denaturation, bowel tissue damage, and breakdown of bowel tissue layer architecture, such that the grasped bowel tissue is sealed with minimal bowel tissue denaturation, bowel tissue damage, and breakdown of bowel tissue layer architecture.

A method of sealing bowel tissue, comprising:

• grasping bowel tissue between first and second electrically-conductive surfaces;
• applying a clamping pressure to the grasped bowel tissue in a range of about 1 kg/cm2 to about 2.5 kg/cm2;
• supplying energy to at least one of the first and second electrically-conductive surfaces such that the energy is conducted between the first and second electrically-conductive surfaces and through the grasped bowel tissue;
• monitoring an optical property of the grasped bowel tissue during the supplying of energy to at least one of the first and second electrically-conductive surfaces;
• and
• stopping the supplying of energy to the at least one of the first and second electrically-conductive surfaces when the optical property of the grasped bowel tissue indicates at least one of bowel tissue denaturation, bowel tissue damage, and breakdown of bowel tissue layer architecture, such that the grasped bowel tissue is sealed with minimal bowel tissue denaturation, bowel tissue damage, and breakdown of bowel tissue layer architecture.