Abstract: A biopsy needle set includes a biopsy needle with a tip that terminates distally in a laterally extending cutting edge that is spaced up from the bottom surface of the needle. A cradle, proximal to the needle, has a floor that is below a central axis of the needle and a row of teeth upwardly extending up from each lateral side of the floor up to about the central axis. Within each row, the teeth are distant from each other and the teeth of the two rows are staggered such that some cross-sections of the cradle include only one tooth and some none. The outer surface of the cradle bears against the inner surface of the cannula to keep the biopsy needle centered in the cannula and from bending to thereby better target tissue of interest for sampling.

Abstract: A cannula comprising a hollow tube made of a biocompatible, thermoplastic polymer, memory shape material, tipped with an injection needle or an electrode at it distal end, assumes desired shapes as it distally emerges from a lumen or channel of an instrument such as an introducer or endoscope. The desires shapes include a curvature conforming to an inverse tangent function. The cannula may be supplied alone, with or without an injection needle or electrode, and in a sterile pouch, for use with a device of a user's choice that has a suitable lumen or channel to guide the cannula, of the cannula may be used without such an instrument. The injection needle can be shorter than conventional to thereby inject medication only or primarily in submucosa and can be sharpened only or mostly at it distal end while the remaining portion of a bevel is not sharp, to thereby reduce the size of an opening the needle makes in tissue and helps keep the medication from leaking out of the injection site.

Abstract: A tissue core sample in a metal core collector or stylet is touched to a substrate channel filled with as special liquid such as a hydrogel to which the tissue core sample is attracted to thereby transfer the tissue sample to the channel while preserving the integrity of the sample, speeding up the transfer and preserving the sample orientation so it can be unambiguously associated with its anatomical origin.

Abstract: A core collector is shaped as a crescent in cross-section and has lateral sides formed into axially extending rows of axially spaced teeth. The arc angle of the crescent shape is sufficient to keep the core collector radially centered in a cannula by having the crescent's lateral sides bear against the inside of the cannula. The set of a core collector and cannula can be used in a known biopsy system to replace the known cannula and core collector of can be used in a new core biopsy instrument.

Abstract: A core biopsy instrument for taking samples of tissue such as prostate tissue comprises a handle configured to releasably receive a cartridge that holds a core collector. In use, after loading a cartridge in the handle, a spring drives the core collector into target tissue and shortly thereafter, in less than a second, a spring drives a cannula over the core collector to cut tissue in a trough thereof from surrounding tissue. The core collector is withdrawn proximally to its initial position in the cartridge and the cartridge is removed from the handle. The cartridge, with the core collector and the tissue sample therein is treated as needed for sending as a unit to a laboratory, thus preserving the orientation and completeness of the tissue sample therein.

Abstract: A cannula comprising a hollow tube made of a biocompatible, thermoplastic polymer, memory shape material, tipped with an injection needle at it distal end, assumes desired shapes as it distally emerges from a lumen or channel of an instrument such as an introducer or endoscope. The desires shape includes a curvature conforming to an inverse tangent function. The cannula may be supplied alone, with or without an injection needle, and in a sterile pouch, for use with a device of an user's choice that has a suitable lumen or channel to guide the cannula, of the cannula may be used without such an instrument.

Abstract: A cannula comprising a hollow tube made of a biocompatible, thermoplastic polymer, memory shape material, tipped with an injection needle at it distal end, assumes desired shapes as it distally emerges from a lumen or channel of an instrument such as an introducer or endoscope. The desires shape includes a curvature conforming to an inverse tangent function. The cannula may be supplied alone, with or without an injection needle, and in a sterile pouch, for use with a device of an user's choice that has a suitable lumen or channel to guide the cannula, of the cannula may be used without such an instrument.

Abstract: An incremental syringe is provided and includes a syringe barrel, a finger grip disposed at the proximal end of the syringe barrel, a tab disposed inside the syringe barrel, and a plunger body having detents, wherein the detents are configured to interact with the tab to provide audible and tactile feedback to a user when the plunger body is pushed through the syringe barrel in a distal direction.

Abstract: A medical injection assembly is provided and includes an introducer with a handle, a sheath, a scope lumen configured to receive an endoscope at a first proximal end of the handle and hold the endoscope in a desired position, a cap attached to the distal end of the scope lumen configured to isolate the scope lumen from the external environment, and a cannula lumen configured to receive a cannula at a second proximal end of the handle and hold the cannula in a desired position. The medical injection assembly includes a cannula configured such that the distance between the distal tip of the cannula and the axis defined by the sheath of the introducer increases as the cannula is moved in a distal direction and a syringe.

Abstract: A medical injection assembly is provided and includes an introducer with a handle, a sheath, and a scope lumen extending from a first proximal end of the handle to a distal end of the sheath, wherein the scope lumen is configured to receive an endoscope at the first proximal end of the handle and hold the endoscope in a desired position. The introducer includes a cannula lumen extending from a second proximal end of the handle to the distal end of the sheath, wherein the cannula lumen is configured to receive a cannula at the second proximal end of the handle and hold the cannula in a desired position. The medical injection assembly includes a cannula configured such that the distance between the distal tip of the cannula and the axis defined by the sheath of the introducer increases as the cannula is moved in a distal direction.