Suture manipulating and/or cutting implement

• US 6,866,673 B2
• Filed: 12/20/2002
• Issued: 03/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tag Medical Devices
• Original Assignee: Dan Moor, Joan M. Sullivan, Ran Oren, Sergio P. Dasilva, Stuart E. Fromm, Thomas May
• Inventors: Fromm, Stuart E., May, Thomas, Sullivan, Joan M., Dasilva, Sergio P., Oren, Ran, Moor, Dan
• Primary Examiner(s): Woo, Julian W.
• Application Number:
  US10/323,795
• Publication Number:
  US 20040122450A1
• Time in Patent Office: 816 Days
• Field of Search: 606/138, 606/139, 606/144, 606/148, 606/103, 606/113, 289/7, 289/10, 289/12, 289/15, 289/17
• US Class Current: 606/148
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/0467 Instruments for cutting sutures surgical cutting instruments A61B17/32
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/0469 Suturing instruments for use in minimally invasive surgery, e.g. endoscopic surgery
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/0483 Hand-held instruments for holding sutures A61B17/0469 takes precedence; other holders for needles or sutures A61B17/06061; surgical forceps A61B17/28; surgical pincettes A61B17/30
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0474 Knot pushers

Abstract

An implement for manipulating and cutting a knotted suture includes a body member having a handle at one end, and a knot-engageable section at the opposite end for engaging the knotted suture to be cut; and a cutting member carried by the body member and having an end portion formed with a cutting edge for cutting the knotted suture at a predetermined distance from the knot. The cutting member is movable along its longitudinal axis from a normal position to an actuated position for cutting the knotted suture. The knot-engageable section of the body member is formed with an axial bore for receiving the end portion of the cutting member when the cutting member is moved to its actuated position, and with an angled bore intersecting the axial bore at an angle to the longitudinal axis for receiving the knotted suture. The knot is located at one side of the angled bore and the suture to be cut extends through the angled bore to the opposite side, such as to permit hand-tensioning the knot and then cutting the suture by moving the cutting member to its actuated position.

Claims

1. An implement for manipulating a knotted suture to properly locate the knot thereof with respect to tissue being sutured, and then for removing excess suture from the knot, said implement comprising:

a body member including a handle at one end, and a knot-engageable section at the opposite end for engaging and moving the knotted suture by manipulation of the handle;

and a cutting member carried by said body member and movable with respect thereto;

said cutting member including a finger-piece at one end proximate to said handle, and a cutting edge at the opposite end proximate to said knot-engageable section of the body member;

said finger-piece being movable with respect to said handle from a normal position wherein said cutting edge is disengaged from the suture at the knot-engageable section of the body member, to an actuated position during which said cutting edge engages and cuts the suture at a predetermined distance from said knot, such that the body member may be manipulated to engage the knotted suture and to properly locate the knot with respect to the tissue being sutured, and then the finger-piece of the cutting member may be moved from its normal position to its actuated position to cut the suture at a predetermined distance from the knot and thereby to remove a predetermined excess of the suture;

said handle including two loops joined together at one end forming recesses at the juncture which recesses are engageable by two fingers of the user for manipulating the implement.

2. The implement according to claim 1, wherein said implement further includes a spring biasing said finger-piece of the cutter member to its normal position.

3. The implement according to claim 1, wherein said body member includes an elongated section between its handle and its knot-engageable section;

and wherein said cutting member moves parallel to the longitudinal axis of said elongated section when moved to its actuated position by said finger-piece.

4. The implement according to claim 3, wherein said knot-engageable section includes a bore extending therethrough for receiving said knotted suture with the knot located at one side of said bore, and the suture to be cut extending through said bore to the opposite side thereof such as to permit tensioning the knot before cutting the suture.

5. An implement for manipulating a knotted suture to properly locate the knot thereof with respect to tissue being sutured, and then for removing excess suture from the knot, said implement comprising:

a body member including a handle at one end, and a knot-engageable section at the opposite end for engaging and moving the knotted suture by manipulation of the handle;

and a cutting member carried by said body member and movable with respect thereto;

said cutting member including a finger-piece at one end proximate to said handle, and a cutting edge at the opposite end proximate to said knot-engageable section of the body member;

said finger-piece being movable with respect to said handle from a normal position wherein said cutting edge is disengaged from the suture at the knot-engageable section of the body member, to an actuated position during which said cutting edge engages and cuts the suture at a predetermined distance from said knot, such that the body member may be manipulated to engage the knotted suture and to properly locate the knot with respect to the tissue being sutured, and then the finger-piece of the cutting member may be moved from its normal position to its actuated position to cut the suture at a predetermined distance from the knot and thereby to remove a predetermined excess of the suture;

wherein said implement further includes a spring biasing said finger-piece of the cutter member to its normal position;

wherein said body member includes an elongated section between its handle and its knot-engageable section; and

wherein said cutting member moves parallel to the longitudinal axis of said elongated section when moved to its actuated position by said finger-piece;

wherein said knot-engageable section includes a bore extending therethrough for receiving said knotted suture with the knot located at one side of said bore, and the suture to be cut extending through said bore to the opposite side thereof such as to permit tensioning the knot before cutting the suture;

wherein said bore in the knot-engageable section of the body member for receiving said knotted sections is an angled bore and extends at an angle to the longitudinal axis of said elongated section of the body member; and

wherein said cutting edge of the cutting member engages said suture, when the cutting member is moved to its actuated position, at the juncture of said bore of the knot-engageable section with the longitudinal axis of said elongated section of the body member.

6. The implement according to claim 5, wherein said elongated section of the body member is formed with an axial passageway is parallel to the longitudinal axis of said elongated section, and wherein said cutting member is movable within said axial passageway to its normal and actuated positions.

7. The implement according to claim 6, wherein said knot-engageable section of the body member is also formed with an axial bore therethrough joined to said axial passageway, said axial bore being configured to receive the end of said cutting member formed with said cutting edge.

8. The implement according to claim 7, wherein said axial passageway in said body member is a slot of rectangular cross-section, and wherein said cutting member is of a corresponding rectangular cross-section except for said end thereof received in said axial bore of the knot-engageable section of the body member.

9. The implement according to claim 8, wherein said axial bore and said end of the cutting member received therein are both of circular cross-section.

10. The implement according to claim 5, wherein said cutting member is formed with a shoulder engageable with a shoulder in said body member after the cutting member has moved its cutting edge past the juncture of said angled bore with said axial bore to cut the suture.

11. The implement according to claim 5, wherein said angle of said angled bore is 15-75 degrees.

12. The implement according to claim 5, wherein said angle of said angled bore is 30-60 degrees.

13. The implement according to claim 5, wherein said knot-engageable section of the body member further includes a recess at said one end of the bore for receiving the knot of said knotted suture.

14. An implement for cutting a knotted suture, comprising:

a body member including a handle at one end and a knot-engageable section at the opposite end for engaging the knotted suture to be cut;

and a cutting member carried by said body member and including an end portion formed with a cutting edge for cutting said knotted suture at a predetermined distance from the knot thereof;

said cutting member being movable along its longitudinal axis from a normal position to an actuated position for cutting said knotted suture;

said knot-engageable section of the body member being formed with an axial bore for receiving said end portion of the cutting member when the cutting member is moved to its actuated position;

said knot-engageable section of the body member also being formed with an angled bore therethrough intersecting said axial bore at an angle to said longitudinal axis for receiving the knotted suture, with the knot located at one side of the angled bore and the suture to be cut extending through said angled bore to the opposite side thereof, such as to permit tensioning the knot, and then cutting the suture by moving the cutting member to its actuated position.

15. The implement according to claim 14, wherein said angled bore forms an angle of 15-75 degrees with respect to said axial bore.

16. The implement according to claim 14, wherein said axial bore and said end of the cutting member received therein are both of circular cross-section.

17. The implement according to claim 14, wherein said cutting member also includes a finger-piece proximate to said handle for moving said cutting member from its normal position to its actuated position, and a spring for normally biasing said cutting member to its normal position.

18. The implement according to claim 14, wherein said body member includes an elongated section between its handle and its knot-engageable section;

such elongated section being formed with a slot;

said cutting member being movable in said slot from its normal position to its actuated position.

19. The implement according to claim 14, wherein said knot-engageable section of the body member further includes a recess at said one end of the bore for receiving the knot of said knotted suture.