Abstract: A surgical stapling assembly including a resiliently mounted anvil member and a staple holding assembly containing a plurality of surgical staples and mounted relative to the anvil member for movement into substantially parallel spaced relation thereto to clamp tissue inserted between the anvil member and staple holding assembly for stapling. If the surgical stapling assembly is overloaded with tissue and clamped, the clamping force results in a displacement of the anvil member relative to the staple holding assembly in the general direction of the clamping force. The amount of displacement of the anvil member permitted by the resilient means is large enough to prevent excessive pressure on the tissue, but not so large that the anvil member is no longer sufficiently close to the staple holding assembly to perform its function of crimping the ends of the staples driven from the staple holding assembly.

Abstract: Surgical stapler apparatus of the type in which a surgical staple is formed around an anvil. The staple is driven by a longitudinally curved pusher which forms an arc of a circle and which is arcuately reciprocal in a similarly curved channel. The distal end portion of the curved channel is substantially tangent to the plane of the distal-most staple in a stack of staples, and the proximal end portion of the staple pusher is substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the stack to provide a very compact stapler configuration.

Abstract: A surgical staple of the type which is applied by being bent around an anvil in a surgical stapler has two spaced surfaces transverse to the longitudinal axis of the staple and located so that when the staple is bent around the anvil, the transverse surfaces cooperate with the anvil to prevent the staple from being pulled back into the stapler.

Abstract: In a surgical stapling instrument in which tissue is stapled between the opposing legs of a U-shaped frame, the staple carrying assembly automatically engages the free ends of both legs of the frame to structurally reinforce the frame during operation of the instrument.

Abstract: A surgical fastener of plastic or plastic-like material includes initially separate fastener and retainer members. The fastener member has at least two parallel prongs, each of which fits into a respective one of at least two apertures in the retainer member. The prongs twist as they enter the apertures. Then the prongs return to their initial orientation in which they interlock with the retainer member to form a finished fastener. The fastener is applied by forcing the fastener member prongs through the tissue to be fastened with the aid of metal pins contiguous with each prong. The pins are automatically withdrawn from the tissue after the prongs interlock with the retainer member and before the fastened tissue is removed from the fastener applying apparatus.

Abstract: Surgical stapler apparatus in which the actuator elements can be pivoted out of the actuator housing to facilitate cleaning of the apparatus between uses without disassembly of the apparatus.

Abstract: An indicator for a surgical stapler viewable through a window adjacent the handle when the stapler magazine is within a spaced relation range to the stapler anvil; whereby, the staples are properly deformed and the stapled tissue is not inordinately crushed.