Surgical stapling device
A surgical stapling device having a removable staple cartridge is disclosed. The cartridge includes a first opening in the staple-forming end of the housing member to allow access to the a staple and an aligned second opening to allow the lead staple to move therethrough. The staple cartridge also comprises a fixed blocking surface on the housing member and a traveling blocking surface on a feeder shoe. The traveling blocking surface is sized so that the feeder shoe moves relative to the fixed blocking surface while moving the staple. The feeder shoe is further shaped so that, when the trigger member is actuated when no staples remain in the staple cartridge, the staple former is not blocked by the feeder shoe.
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This application is a divisional of co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 10/227,947, entitled “Surgical Stapling Device,” filed Aug. 26, 2002, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/156,716 filed on May 28, 2002, now abandoned, which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety for all purposes.
STATEMENTS REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENTNot applicable.
REFERENCE TO A MICROFICHE APPENDIXNot applicable.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to health care devices comprising medical and veterinary devices, and more particularly to devices useful in suturing or closing wounds or incisions.
2. Description of the Related Art
The use of surgical staples in the health care field, comprising both the medical and veterinary fields, to close wounds and incisions has begun to, in many contexts, replace conventional suture ligature.
Surgical skin stapling has been found to be desirable in that it requires less skill of the health care clinician than conventional suture ligature. In addition, removal of staples is faster and easier than suture ligature. As in most fields, simplicity in wound and incision closure decreases the possibility of error, an accomplishment of particular importance in the health care field. Surgical stapling also provides better post-surgery aesthetic appearance than does conventional suture ligature and needle wound closure. Further still, postoperative infection is reduced in the use of skin stapling over suture ligature.
Because surgical stapling takes less time than conventional suture ligature, surgical stapling is economically advantageous. Both implanting and removing surgical staples is easier than placing and removing conventional sutures. It is, for example, estimated that the typical surgical stapling operation takes approximately 10% of the time of a conventional ligature placement. Thus, a significant time savings is involved in using surgical staples for wound and incision closure.
However, not all clinicians are able to take advantage of stapling technology because available surgical stapling devices are expensive. For example, clinicians who work in low-income regions or without insurance support, are often unable to afford currently available surgical staple devices and supplies. However, clinicians and their patients who can afford stapling devices end up benefiting economically in the long run.
While advantageous in the respects discussed, current surgical stapling devices present certain limitations. First, surgical stapling devices without a removable cartridge are designed so that the entire stapling device is discarded after all staples have been used. Such stapling devices are not economically advantageous in the long run. Also, because all parts of such a stapling device are disposed of after the staples are used, the quality of the parts must be sacrificed to keep costs down. However, if premium quality components are used, disposing of these parts each time the staples are used raises the cost of using the stapling device.
Current surgical stapling devices which do use a replaceable staple cartridge minimize the waste of many functional components of the stapling device. This recycling of parts for reuse is economically advantageous. However, current surgical stapling devices employing a replaceable cartridge do not allow for reuse of both a staple former and an anvil. Some of the staple cartridges currently in use include both a staple former and an anvil as an integral part of the replaceable cartridge, and all cartridges include at least an anvil or a staple former. By including an anvil and/or a staple former as an integral part of a replaceable cartridge, these components are disposed of with the staple cartridge. Reducing the disposal of functional parts is economically advantageous. Therefore, it is desirable to have a surgical stapling device in which a stapling cartridge does not include either a staple former or an anvil as an integral component of the staple cartridge.
Current surgical staple devices generally provide a feeder shoe to urge a plurality of staples toward the staple-forming or exiting end of the stapling device. A limitation in such feeder shoes and urging mechanisms is that staples are allowed to jam on the sliding surface as the staples move toward the staple-forming or exiting end of the stapling device.
Such staple jams can be at least inconvenient to clinicians who temporarily cannot utilize the stapling device. A limitation in the feeder shoes and urging mechanisms which can lead to staple jams is that while all such feeder shoes contact at least a part of one of the staples, and some feeder shoes contact much of one side of a staple, when a staple slips, the staple can be lodged in spaces either between the staple stack containing a plurality of staples and the track upon which the plurality of staples slide, within other spaces existing within the feeder shoe itself, or between the feeder shoe and the track upon which the staple stack slides. It is therefore desirable to have a staple housing, such as a staple cartridge, in which the outer surfaces of a feeder shoe are continuous with the staple housing and in which the feeder shoe acts as a traveling blocking surface against a fixed blocking surface.
Another limitation of current feeder shoes is that if such feeder shoes are extended completely to the end of the staple cartridge, as when all staples in the staple cartridge have been used so that no staples remain in the staple cartridge, forcing the staple former on the feeder shoe can damage these parts. It is therefore desirable to avoid this force on the feeder shoe and staple former.
Finally, a limitation of current surgical stapling devices is that staples are implanted substantially orthogonal to the skin surface. By inserting staples at an angle of between about 10°-45° relative to the skin surface and then tilting the staple so that the staple is ultimately positioned substantially orthogonal to the skin surface, greater resulting anastomosis can be obtained as the skin grows together. This greater anastomosis allows for shorter healing time. Thus, it is desirable to have a stapling device in which a staple can be inserted at an angle of about 10°-45° relative to the skin, the staple subsequently rotated to a final orientation being substantially orthogonal to the skin's surface.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONAccording to the invention, a surgical stapling device has a body member having a staple cartridge recess, a trigger member movably positioned with the body member, a staple former positioned with the body member movably positioned with the trigger member, a staple cartridge having a staple, the staple cartridge removably positioned with the staple cartridge recess and an anvil member positioned with the body member for transforming the staple from a pre-implantation configuration to a post-implantation configuration upon movement of the trigger member from an at-rest position to a staple-forming position. The preferred embodiment also includes a body member having an aligning surface for implantation of the staple at an insertion angle relative to the skin surface of between about 10° and about 45°.
The surgical staple cartridge includes a housing member having a staple-forming end, a plurality of staples having a lead staple movably positioned in the housing member and a first opening in the staple-forming end of the housing member to allow access to the lead staple and a second opening in the staple-forming end of the housing member to allow the lead staple to move therethrough. The staple cartridge preferably contains a feeder shoe for urging the plurality of staples toward the staple-forming end of the housing member. To prevent staple jamming, the staple cartridge also preferably contains a fixed blocking surface on the housing member and a traveling blocking surface on the feeder shoe. The traveling blocking surface is sized so that the feeder shoe moves along the fixed blocking surface of the housing member while blocking the staple. The staple cartridge also preferably includes a flexible arm extending from the housing member and moving between a memory position and a flexed position outwardly from the memory position for a snap fit of the staple cartridge to the stapling device. Additionally, the feeder shoe is angled to prevent damage to the staple former and feeder shoe when the trigger member is squeezed when no staples remain in the staple cartridge.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGSVarious objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the presently preferred exemplary embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, of which:
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The body member halves 10A and 10B in the embodiment illustrated are molded of appropriate plastic material suitable for use in a surgical environment and capable of withstanding sterilization by any one or more of the standard sterilization procedures well known in the art. Preferably, a polycarbonate or like thermoplastic resin is used. Once the internal components of the surgical stapling device (to be described hereinafter) have been assembled in one of the body halves, the body halves are joined together. The halves are joined preferably by an arbor press, but may be joined by any similar joining means known in the art. In addition to the frictional engagement of female members 20B, 22B, 24B, 26B and 28B with male members 20A, 22A, 24A, 26A and 28A, the mated edges 10F, 10G and 10H and 10I, 10J and 10K may be permanently bonded by gluing, welding or the like. It will be understood by one skilled in the art that if the instrument of the present invention is to be non-disposable and reusable, body member halves 10A and 10B can be fabricated of stainless steel or other appropriate material suitable for use in a surgical environment and capable of being sterilized. Under such circumstances, the body member halves 10A and 10B will be held together by removable fastening means such as screws or the like.
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At its lowermost end the staple former 44 has staple-forming notches 44B and 44I formed therein, as shown in
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To shift the staple former 44 between its first and second positions, as illustrated in
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A cap 52 is attached to the rear end of the housing member 50. The cap 52 is affixed to the housing member 50 by snaps, generally indicated at 54A and 56A. Snap 54A is removably affixed to snap receptacle 54B on the housing member 50. Snap 56A is removably affixed to snap receptacle 56B on the housing member 50. Snaps 54A and 56A are located on flexible arms 52A and 52B, respectively, of the cap 52. As best seen in
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Snaps 60 and 62 are located on arms 50A and 50B, respectively, of the housing member 50. Arms 50A and 50B are biased inward toward a memory position against sides 10U and 10V of body member 10, as seen in
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A second opening 50G in the staple-forming end 50L of housing member 50 is also aligned vertically with lead staple 64, as shown in
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It will be apparent from
When cap 52 is affixed to housing member 50 using snaps 54A and 56A, as previously described, cap tabs 94 and 95 fit within cap tab inserts 96 and 97, as seen in
Feeder shoe 74 additionally comprises angles 74E and 74F. As best shown in
As described previously, staples are inserted into the skin surface at an insertion angle of about 10° from vertical, as best shown in
By inserting staples at an insertion angle of about 10° and subsequently bringing the staple to near vertical as described, the skin within the grasp of the staple is brought closer together so that the skin is denser than otherwise. This is shown in
The stapling device of the present invention comes to the clinician in assembled, loaded and sterilized form. Grasping the device in his or her right or left hand by rearward handle portion 10C and with his or her fingers about trigger member 12 as shown in
As best shown in
Once the device is properly located over incision 106,
In this configuration, the fully formed and implanted staple 116 is in its post-implantation configuration and is now of such dimension that it can slide off anvil member 40. Upon release of trigger member 12, leaf spring member 48 will return the trigger member to its normal position as shown in
Modifications may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit of it. For example, leaf spring member 48 can be replaced by a compression spring or any other appropriate type of biasing means.
The foregoing disclosure and description of the invention are illustrative and explanatory thereof, but to the extent foreseeable, the spirit and scope of the invention are defined by the appended claims.
Claims
1. A surgical stapling device, comprising:
- a body member having a staple cartridge recess;
- a staple former movably positioned with the body member;
- an anvil member positioned with the body member; and
- means for moving the staple former between an at-rest position and a staple-forming position.
2. The surgical stapling device of claim 1, further comprising a staple cartridge removably positioned with the staple cartridge recess, wherein when the staple cartridge is removed from the staple cartridge recess, the anvil member remains positioned with the body member.
3. The surgical stapling device of claim 1, further comprising a staple cartridge removably positioned with the staple cartridge recess, wherein when the staple cartridge is removed from the staple cartridge recess, the staple former remains positioned with the body member.
4. The surgical stapling device of claim 1, wherein the anvil member having an anvil end.
5. The surgical stapling device of claim 1, wherein the means for moving includes a trigger member.
6. A surgical stapling device, comprising:
- a body member having a staple cartridge recess;
- a staple former movably positioned with the body member;
- a staple cartridge having a staple, the staple cartridge removably positioned with the staple cartridge recess; and
- an anvil member positioned with the body member for transforming the staple from a pre-implantation configuration to a post-implantation configuration upon moving the staple former from an at-rest position to a staple-forming position.
7. The surgical stapling device of claim 6, wherein the staple cartridge comprises:
- a housing member having a staple-forming end; and
- an opening adjacent the staple-forming end of the housing member to allow a portion of the staple former to move therethrough.
8. The surgical stapling device of claim 7, further comprising a feeder shoe in the housing member, wherein when the feeder shoe engages the staple-forming end of the staple cartridge, the staple former will urge the feeder shoe away from the staple-forming end.
9. A surgical stapling device, comprising:
- a body member having a staple cartridge recess;
- a staple former movably positioned with the body member; and
- a staple cartridge, comprising: a housing member having a staple-forming end; a staple movably positioned in the housing member; a feeder shoe movably positioned in the housing member for urging the staple towards the staple-forming end.
10. The surgical stapling device of claim 9, wherein the feeder shoe moves between an engaged position with the staple-forming end of the housing member and a position away from the staple-forming end of the housing member when pressure is exerted by the staple former upon the feeder shoe.
11. A surgical stapling device, comprising:
- a body member having a staple cartridge recess;
- a staple former movably positioned with the body member; and
- a staple cartridge, comprising: a housing member; and means for removably positioning the staple cartridge with the staple cartridge recess.
12. The surgical stapling device of claim 11, wherein the means for removably positioning the staple cartridge including a flexible arm extending from the housing member and moving between a memory position and a flexed position whereby a greater clearance is provided between the flexible arm and the housing member when the flexible arm is in the flexed position.
13. The surgical stapling device of claim 12, wherein the housing member having a staple-forming end and the flexible arm is proximal to the staple-forming end of the housing member.
14. A surgical stapling device, comprising:
- a body member adapted to receive a staple cartridge;
- a staple former movably positioned with the body member; and
- a staple cartridge, comprising: a housing member having a snap fit for removably positioning the staple cartridge with the body member.
15. The surgical stapling device of claim 14, wherein the housing member is biased towards a memory position to engage the body member.
16. A surgical stapling device, comprising:
- a body member having a staple cartridge recess;
- a staple former movably positioned with the body member; and
- a staple cartridge, comprising: a housing member having a staple-forming end; a feeder shoe movably positioned in the housing member and having a surface angled relative to the staple-forming end of the housing member; a staple urged by the feeder shoe towards the staple-forming end; and an opening adjacent the staple-forming end sized to allow the staple to move through the opening.
17. The surgical stapling device of claim 16, wherein the feeder shoe moves between an engaged position with the staple-forming end of the housing member and a position away from the staple-forming end of the housing member when pressure is exerted upon the angled surface by the staple former.
18. A surgical stapling device, comprising:
- a body member having a staple cartridge recess;
- a staple former movably positioned with the body member; and
- a staple cartridge, comprising: a housing member having a staple-forming end; a staple movably positioned in the housing member; and a feeder shoe movably positioned in the housing member for urging the staple towards the staple-forming end; and
- an anvil member positioned with the body member for transforming the staple from a pre-implantation configuration to a post-implantation configuration upon moving the staple former from an at-rest position to a staple-forming position.
19. The surgical stapling device of claim 18, wherein the housing member having a first opening adjacent the staple-forming end of the housing member to allow a portion of the staple former to move therethrough.
20. The surgical stapling device of claim 19, wherein the housing member having a second opening adjacent the staple-forming end of the housing member to allow the staple to move through the second opening.
Type: Application
Filed: Dec 23, 2005
Publication Date: May 11, 2006
Applicant: Temedco, Ltd. (San Antonio, TX)
Inventor: Phillip Brown (El Paso, TX)
Application Number: 11/318,410
International Classification: A61B 17/10 (20060101);