Surgical instruments for stabilizing the beating heart during coronary artery bypass graft surgery
First Claim
1. A device for use in cardiovascular surgery on a beating heart, comprising:
- a shaft means having a distal end and a proximal end;
a stabilizing member adapted to engage a surface of the beating heart; and
a ball-joint connecting said shaft means and said stabilizing member, said ball-joint allowing said stabilizing member to be positioned about three degrees of freedom relative to said shaft means.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Methods and devices used to stabilize a beating heart during a surgical procedure on the heart are disclosed. The stabilizing device is introduced through an opening through the chest and brought into contact with the beating heart, and by exerting a stabilizing force on the device, the motion of the heart caused by the contractions of the heart muscles is effectively eliminated. Accordingly, the heart is stabilized and movement of the site of the surgery is minimized. Typically, in separate steps, a surgeon contacts the heart with the stabilizing device, assesses the degree of movement of the anastomosis site, and exerts a force with a stabilizing device such that the contractions of the beating heart causes only minimal excess motion at the surgery site. The stabilizing device may be attached to a rigid support or may be attached to a semi-rigid support which is rendered motionless mechanically, chemically or by human intervention.
234 Citations
24 Claims
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1. A device for use in cardiovascular surgery on a beating heart, comprising:
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a shaft means having a distal end and a proximal end;
a stabilizing member adapted to engage a surface of the beating heart; and
a ball-joint connecting said shaft means and said stabilizing member, said ball-joint allowing said stabilizing member to be positioned about three degrees of freedom relative to said shaft means. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A device for use in cardiovascular surgery on a beating heart, comprising:
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a curved tubular member having a distal end and a proximal end, said tubular member being curved along a substantial portion of its length between said distal end and said proximal end; and
a stabilizer member connected to said distal end, said stabilizer member adapted to engage the surface of the beating heart for localized stabilizatin of an area where a surgical procedure is to be performed. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A device for use in cardiovascular surgery on a beating heart, comprising;
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a shaft means having a distal end and a proximal end; and
a stabilizing member connectable to said shaft means and adapted to engage a surface of the beating heart, said stabilizing member having a substantially rigid heart contacting surface adapted to contact and stabilize a portion of the heart without application of a vacuum, and an aperture that exposes an operative site, the aperture extending along a longitudinal axis of the stabilizing member.
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Specification