SURGICAL INSTRUMENT HOLDER
An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base is provided having a mounting portion configured and dimensioned to engage a portion of a base, a jaw assembly including first and second jaw members which define a retaining area therebetween configured and dimensioned to retain the shaft of a surgical instrument therein and thereby fix the length of the instrument shaft relative to the base and an operative site, and an instrument position adjustment mechanism which includes an adjustment member rotatably disposed in relative to the mounting portion to facilitate selective position adjustment of the jaw assembly with respect to the mounting portion.
This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/977,195, filed Oct. 24, 2007, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/647,950, filed on Aug. 23, 2003, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,294,104, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/779,021, filed on Feb. 7, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,610,009, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/235,593 filed on Jan. 22, 1999 which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/072,406 filed on Jan. 23, 1998, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,200,263, the contents all of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.
BACKGROUND1. Technical Field
The subject disclosure relates to minimally invasive surgical procedures and apparatus, and more particularly to apparatus for holding surgical instrumentation during surgery associated with the thoracic cavity.
2. Background of Related Art
It is well established that the performance of various types of surgical procedures using less invasive techniques and instrumentation has provided numerous physical benefits to the patient while reducing the overall cost of such procedures. One area, for example, which has experienced a great increase in the performance of less invasive procedures is in the area of heart surgery. In particular, coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) procedures have been performed using less invasive techniques with much success.
Access to the patient's thoracic cavity for such procedures in the past was typically achieved by a large longitudinal incision in the chest. This procedure, referred to as a median sternotomy, requires a saw or other cutting instrument to cut the sternum and allow two opposing halves of the rib cages to be spread apart. U.S. Pat. No. 5,025,779 to Bugge discloses a retractor which is designed to grip opposite sternum halves and spread the thoracic cavity apart. The large opening which is created by this technique enables the surgeon to directly visualize the surgical site and perform procedures on the affected organs. However, such procedures that involve large incisions and substantial displacement of the rib cage are often traumatic to the patient with significant attendant risks. The recovery period may be extended and is often painful. Furthermore, patients for whom coronary surgery is indicated may need to forego such surgery due to the risks involved with gaining access to the heart.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,503,617 to Jako discloses a retractor configured to be held by the surgeon for use in vascular or cardiac surgery to retract and hold ribs apart to allow access to the heart or a lung through an operating window. The retractor includes a rigid frame and a translation frame slidably connected to the rigid frame. Lower and upper blades are rotatably mounted to the rigid frame and the translation frame respectively. Such a “window” approach requires instrumentation that can be inserted into and manipulated within the limited space available in and around the surgical site.
Therefore, a continuing need exists for more versatile and varied surgical instrumentation which facilitates performing surgical procedures in limited access cavities of a patient during less invasive surgical procedures. A need also exists for instrument holding apparatus to retain surgical instruments in place during surgical procedures and free the surgeons hands.
SUMMARYThe present disclosure addresses the above-noted needs while providing various embodiments of an apparatus for holding surgical instruments that have many unique features and advantages over the prior instrumentation. The presently disclosed apparatus for holding surgical instruments provides greater versatility during surgical procedures which are less invasive than traditional procedures.
For example, in one embodiment, the present disclosure provides an apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base, which includes a mounting portion configured and dimensioned to engage a portion of a base, a jaw assembly including first and second jaw members which define a retaining area therebetween configured and dimensioned to retain the shaft of a surgical instrument therein and thereby fix the length of the instrument shaft relative to the base and an operative site, and an instrument position adjustment mechanism which includes an adjustment member rotatably disposed in relative to the mounting portion to facilitate selective position adjustment of the jaw assembly with respect to the mounting portion.
The instrument position adjustment mechanism may include a lock member such that when positioned in a locked position, the adjustment member is prevented from moving relative to the mounting portion and when the lock member is positioned in an unlocked position, the adjustment member is permitted to move relative to the mounting portion. The jaw assembly preferably includes a jaw approximation control member which controls movement of one of the first and second jaw members relative to the other of the first and second jaw members.
Various preferred embodiments are described herein with reference to the drawings, wherein:
The instrument mounting holder of the present disclosure is designed to mount various accessory instruments to the ring base disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,947,896, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The present disclosure is directed to an instrument holding apparatus, which is removably positionable on base 50, and can mount a variety of instruments such as an illumination instrument, a grasper, a retractor, a heart stabilizer or any other instrument that would be useful in performing the surgical procedure. Only the shaft of the accessory instrument is shown in the drawings and is represented generically by reference letter “S”.
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
In use, instrument shaft S is placed between movable jaw 64 and stationary jaw 52 with the jaws in the open position as shown in
Referring to
Another difference between instrument holder 100 and instrument holder 1 is the configuration of the locking knob. In particular, screw handle 38 of instrument holder 1 is in the form of a rotatable lever whereas screw handle 138 of instrument holder is in the form of a wing having extended portions 138a and 138b extending radially outwardly from the center along a plane.
It will be understood that various modifications may be made to the embodiments of the apparatus for holding surgical instruments shown and described herein. Therefore, the above description should not be construed as limiting, but merely as examples of preferred embodiments. Those skilled in the art will envision other modifications within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.
Claims
1. An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base, the apparatus comprising:
- a mounting assembly having a flexible cantilevered extended portion configured for snap-fit engagement with a portion of the base; and
- a jaw assembly having first and second jaw members that define a retaining area therebetween, the retaining area being dimensioned to receive a shaft of the surgical instrument, the jaw assembly movably disposed relative to the mounting assembly to facilitate selective positioning of the surgical instrument within a surgical site.
2. An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base according to claim 1, further including an instrument position adjustment mechanism that facilitates rotational and pivotable movement of the jaw members about the mounting portion.
3. An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base according to claim 1, wherein the cantilevered extended portion of the mounting assembly includes a lip for engaging a rim portion of the base.
4. An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base according to claim 3, wherein the mounting assembly includes a lip configured to cooperate with the lip of the cantilevered extended portion to secure the mounting assembly to the base.
5. An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base according to claim 1, wherein the jaw assembly includes a jaw approximation control member which controls movement of at least one of the jaw members relative to the other jaw member to selectively fix the length of the surgical instrument relative to the base.
6. An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base according to claim 1, wherein the jaw approximation control member is rotatable.
7. An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base according to claim 6, wherein the instrument position adjustment mechanism further includes a lock member for selectively locking the jaw assembly relative to the mounting portion.
8. An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base according to claim 1, wherein the lock member is rotatable.
9. An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base according to claim 6, wherein the instrument position adjustment mechanism includes a ball which facilitates rotational and pivotable movement of the jaw member about the mounting portion.
10. An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base according to claim 1, wherein the mounting assembly is in the form of a clip.
11. An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base according to claim 1, wherein the cantilevered extended portion deflects upon the application of a generally vertically directed force.
12. An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base according to claim 7, wherein the lock member is a knob.
13. An apparatus for holding a surgical instrument relative to a base according to claim 7, wherein the lock member has extended portions extending radially outwardly from a center along a plane.
14. A method of mounting an instrument holder to a base, comprising the steps of:
- providing an apparatus for holding a surgical instrument which includes a mounting assembly having a cantilevered extended portion configured for snap-fit engagement with a portion of a base, a jaw assembly having first and second jaw members which define a retaining area therebetween which is configured and dimensioned to receive a shaft of the surgical instrument, the jaw assembly movably disposed relative to the mounting portion to facilitate selective positioning of the surgical instrument within a surgical site;
- moving the cantilevered extended portion to selectively engage the portion of the base;
- moving the surgical instrument to a desired position between the jaw members;
- selectively locking the jaw members about the shaft of the surgical instrument;
- moving the jaw assembly relative to the mounting assembly; and
- selectively locking the jaw assembly relative to the mounting assembly to position the surgical instrument at a desired location within an operative site.
15. A method of mounting an instrument holder to a base according to claim 14, further comprising the step of:
- providing an instrument position adjustment mechanism which includes an adjustment member for moving the jaw assembly relative to the mounting portion.
16. A method of mounting an instrument holder to a base according to claim 14, further comprising the step of:
- selectively locking the mounting assembly relative to the base.
Type: Application
Filed: Jun 28, 2010
Publication Date: Nov 11, 2010
Inventor: Wayne C. Person (Newtown, CT)
Application Number: 12/824,767