FORM IN PLACE FASTENERS

• US 20080114381A1
• Filed: 11/10/2006
• Published: 05/15/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc. (Johnson & Johnson)
• Original Assignee: Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc. (Johnson & Johnson)
• Inventors: Faller, Graig N., Voegele, James W., Hunt, John V., Thompson, Bennie, Price, Daniel W., Nalagatla, Anil K., Widenhouse, Christopher W., Kolata, Ronald J., Hueil, J. Charles, Haberstitch, Wells D., Sheets, John W.
• Granted Patent: US 7,753,936 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 606/151
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/10 for applying or removing wound clamps, e.g. containing only one clamp or staple A61B17/076 takes precedence; containing multiple wound clamps A61B17/068; Wound clamp magazines containers, packaging elements or packages specially adapted for particular articles or with special means for dispensing contents B65D83/00, B65D85/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/005 hardenable using external energy source, e.g. laser, ultrasound
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0408 Rivets

Abstract

A fastening device for clamping and fastening tissue together with fasteners formed from an adhesive is disclosed. An embodiment of the adhesive fastening device can clamp a first and a second portion of tissue together between a first and a second jaw, and can place a fluid polymer adhesive into tissue and form it into a polymerized surgical fastener within the tissue. The adhesive fastener can be formed as a polymerized shank or shaft extending through the tissue, and can have one or more heads formed on the shank. The shank can be formed solely from the polymerizable adhesive, or can be formed from another material such as nitinol, titanium, stainless steel, suture, or a plastic. Shanks of other material can be combined with the adhesive. Alternately, an adhesive fastener can be formed extending distally from a distal end of the surgical device. And, an adhesive fastener can be formed around a luminal tissue or within luminal tissue.

Claims

1. A surgical device for forming adhesive fasteners in one or more portions of tissue comprising:

a) a shaft;

b) a first jaw extending from a distal end of the shaft and a second jaw at the distal end of the shaft, the second jaw movable from a first position spaced away from the first jaw to a second position adjacent to the first jaw to clamp tissue therebetween;

c) a fluid polymer adhesive contained within the surgical device, the fluid polymer adhesive polymerizable by exposure to an adhesive initiator; and

d) a fastener forming mechanism for forming an adhesive fastener in tissue with the fluid polymer adhesive, wherein at least a part of the adhesive fastener is formed by shaping the fluid polymer adhesive in contact with the one or more portions of tissue, and polymerizing the fluid polymer adhesive by exposing the shaped fluid polymer adhesive to the adhesive initiator.

2. The surgical device of claim 1 wherein the fastener forming mechanism includes a pump comprising a piston in a bore for dispensing the fluid polymer adhesive from within the surgical device and into contact with the one or more portions of tissue.

3. The surgical device of claim 2 wherein the adhesive initiator is one selected from the group consisting of tissue contact, visible light, ultraviolet radiation, heat, moisture, and polymerization initiating compounds.

4. The surgical device of claim 3 wherein the adhesive initiator is a polymerization initiating compound on at least a portion of the first jaw and the second jaw.

5. The surgical device of claim 1 further including a hollow needle filed with the adhesive reciprocatably mounted within the shaft and operably coupled to the fastener forming mechanism to penetrate the one or more portions of tissue clamped between the first jaw and the second jaw, wherein when the hollow needle penetrates the one or more portions of tissue, the fastener forming mechanism places the fluid polymer adhesive within the one or more portions of tissue to form the adhesive fastener therein.

6. The surgical device of claim 2 wherein the first jaw has a first head forming pocket and the second jaw has a second head forming pocket, wherein when the fastener forming mechanism forms an adhesive fastener from the fluid polymer adhesive in contact with the one or more portions of tissue, the fastener forming mechanism forms a dual headed adhesive fastener by forming a first fastener head in the first head forming pocket and forming a second fastener head in the second head forming pocket.

7. The surgical device of claim 6 wherein the fastener forming mechanism includes one or more hollow needles reciprocatably mounted within the first jaw to penetrate into and retract from the one or more portions of tissue clamped within the first jaw and the second jaws.

8. The surgical device of claim 7 wherein each of the one or more hollow needles have a sharp edge for coring a passage through the one or more portions of tissue and a hollow for storing the tissue remnants therein.

9. The surgical device of claim 8 wherein the one or more hollow needles have a reciprocating plunger within the hollow for ejecting the tissue remnants from each of one or more hollow needles the hollow needle and into one of the first head forming pocket and the second head forming pocket, the tissue remnants becoming encapsulated in the adhesive fastener when the fluid polymer adhesive is formed.

10. The surgical device of claim 9 wherein the one or more hollow needles and the plunger mounted within the hollow bends within the first jaw towards the second jaw to penetrate tissue clamped therebetween.

11. The surgical device of claim 7 wherein the one or more hollow needles have a distal point for penetrating tissue and the hollow is filled with the fluid polymer adhesive, wherein when the one or more hollow needles reciprocates to penetrate tissue, the fastener forming mechanism dispenses the polymer adhesive from the one or more hollow needles to form a double headed adhesive fastener from each of the one or more hollow needles by forming the first fastener head within the first head forming pocket and forming an adhesive shank within the tissue and forming the second fastener head within the second head forming pocket.

12. The surgical device of claim 11 further comprising a knife operatively attached to the one or more hollow needles to penetrate into and cut tissue when the one or more hollow needles penetrate into and retract from the one or more portions of tissue clamped within the first jaw and the second jaws.

13. The surgical device of claim 12 wherein the knife is circular and the one or more hollow needles are in a circular array about the knife.

14. The surgical device of claim 6 wherein the one or more portions of tissue are a vessel clampable between the first jaw and the second jaw and the first jaw and the second jaw have one or more flexible pads to contact the vessel.

15. The surgical device of claim 14 wherein the first head forming pocket and the second head forming pocket form a continuous chamber for the reception of the fluid polymer adhesive therein, the continuous chamber forming about the vessel between the one or more flexible pads when the second jaw is adjacent to the first jaw.

16. The surgical device of claim 14 further including a hollow injector reciprocatably mounted within the shaft and operably coupled to the fastener forming mechanism to penetrate the vessel clamped between the first jaw and the second jaw, wherein when the hollow needle penetrates the vessel, the fastener forming mechanism places the fluid polymer adhesive within the vessel to form the adhesive fastener therein.

17. The surgical device of claim 6 including a feeding mechanism within the second jaw containing one or more bendable shanks ejectable from the feeding mechanism, wherein when one of the one or more bendable shanks is ejected into the one or more portions of tissue, the fastener forming mechanism applies the fluid polymer adhesive about a first and a second end of the bendable shank to form a double headed adhesive fastener.

18. The surgical device of claim 17 including a bendable hollow needle reciprocally mounted within the shaft to penetrate the luminal tissue clamped between the first jaw and the second jaw, wherein the feeding mechanism is within the hollow needle and places one of the one or more bendable shanks into tissue for each reciprocation of the bendable hollow needle

19. The surgical device of claim 17 wherein the bendable shank is formed from a material selected from the group comprising suture, nickel titanium alloys, stainless steel, and titanium.

21. The surgical device of claim 19 wherein the adhesive initiator is one selected from the group consisting of tissue contact, heat, moisture, and polymerization initiating compounds

23. A surgical device of claim 21 including a plunger within the at least one hollow needle for dispensing the fluid polymer adhesive from the at least one hollow needle during reciprocation of the hollow needle.

20. A surgical device for forming fasteners within one or more portions of tissue comprising:

a) a shaft having a proximal and a distal end;

b) fluid polymer adhesive contained within the shaft wherein the polymer adhesive is polymerized by exposure to an adhesive initiator; and

c) a fastener forming mechanism for forming an adhesive fastener in the one or more portions of tissue with the fluid polymer adhesive, wherein the fluid polymer adhesive is shaped into the adhesive fastener from a distal end of the shaft and polymerized by exposing the shaped fluid polymer adhesive to the adhesive initiator.

22. A surgical device of claim 20 wherein the fastener forming mechanism comprises at least one hollow needle reciprocally mounted within the shaft and filled with the fluid polymer adhesive, wherein reciprocation of the at least one hollow needle drives the hollow needle into tissue and retraction of the needle dispenses the fluid polymer adhesive into the one or more portions of tissue as the needle retracts.

24. A surgical device of claim 20 wherein the shaft has a head forming feature at a distal end of the shaft about each of the at least one hollow needles, the head forming feature for forming a head at an end of each of the adhesive fasteners.