Cannula for receiving surgical instruments
First Claim
1. A cannula for receiving surgical instruments for performing a surgical procedure on a body, said cannula comprising:
- a tubular structure defining a passage through which the surgical instruments are inserted into the body;
said tubular structure including an expandable portion for enabling an increase in the cross-sectional area of said passage;
said expandable portion of said tubular structure having a slot and a guide member disposed in said slot, said guide member being movable from a first end of said slot toward a second end of said slot to enable the cross-sectional area of said passage to increase, said expandable portion having a stop between said first and second ends of said slot engageable with said guide member to retain said guide member in a position relative to said slot and resist movement of said guide member from said position relative to said slot.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A cannula (10) for receiving surgical instruments for performing a surgical procedure on a body includes a tubular structure (12) defining a passage (16) through which the surgical instruments are inserted into the body. The tubular structure (12) includes an expandable portion (40) for enabling an increase in the cross-sectional area of the passage (16). The expandable portion (40) of the tubular structure (12) has a slot (100) and a guide member (114) disposed in the slot. The guide member (114) is movable from a first end (102) of the slot (100) toward a second end (104) of the slot to enable the cross-sectional area of the passage (16) to increase. The expandable portion (40) has a stop (106) between the first and second ends (102 and 104) of the slot (100) engageable with the guide member (114) to retain the guide member in a position relative to the slot and resist movement of the guide member from the position relative to the slot.
395 Citations
19 Claims
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1. A cannula for receiving surgical instruments for performing a surgical procedure on a body, said cannula comprising:
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a tubular structure defining a passage through which the surgical instruments are inserted into the body;
said tubular structure including an expandable portion for enabling an increase in the cross-sectional area of said passage;
said expandable portion of said tubular structure having a slot and a guide member disposed in said slot, said guide member being movable from a first end of said slot toward a second end of said slot to enable the cross-sectional area of said passage to increase, said expandable portion having a stop between said first and second ends of said slot engageable with said guide member to retain said guide member in a position relative to said slot and resist movement of said guide member from said position relative to said slot. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A cannula for receiving surgical instruments for performing a surgical procedure, said cannula comprising:
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a first tubular portion having a first outer surface for engaging a body and a first inner surface defining a first passage for receiving the surgical instruments, said first passage having a first cross-sectional area, said first tubular portion having a proximal end and a distal end; and
a second tubular portion attached to said distal end of said first tubular portion, said second tubular portion having a second outer surface for engaging the body and a second inner surface defining a second passage for receiving the surgical instruments, said second passage being a continuation of said first passage, said second tubular portion being expandable to enlarge a cross-sectional area of second passage to a size which is greater than the cross-sectional area of said first passage, said second tubular portion having a slot and a guide member disposed in said slot, said guide member being movable from a first end of said slot toward a second end of said slot to enable the cross-sectional area of said second passage to increase, said expandable portion having a stop between said first and second ends of said slot engageable with said guide member to retain said guide member in a position relative to said slot and resist movement of said guide member from said position relative to said slot. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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Specification