Surgical stapler with an end effector support
First Claim
1. A surgical stapler, comprising:
- an end effector having a cartridge arm for holding at least one staple, and an anvil pivotally coupled to the cartridge arm and effective to deform the at least one staple; and
a support coupled to the end effector, the support having a distal end movable between a proximal-most position in which the anvil and cartridge arm can pivot between open-most and closed-most positions, and a distal-most position in which the distal end of the support engages at least at a mid-portion of the end effector to prevent deflection of the anvil when at least one staple is driven from the cartridge arm and deformed against the anvil.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A surgical stapler is provided having a cartridge arm for holding staples, an anvil pivotally connected thereto to deform fired staples from the cartridge arm, and a support for substantially preventing anvil deflection during staple firing to help insure proper staple formation. Some supports allow pivoting between the anvil and cartridge arm when in a first position, but prevent or hinder the pivoting action when in a second position. Supports can also be adapted to contact the anvil at a distal position relative to the pivot point between the anvil and cartridge arm. Exemplary structures of supports embodied as one or more links or as a sleeve are described. Methods of use are also discussed.
1302 Citations
25 Claims
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1. A surgical stapler, comprising:
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an end effector having a cartridge arm for holding at least one staple, and an anvil pivotally coupled to the cartridge arm and effective to deform the at least one staple; and a support coupled to the end effector, the support having a distal end movable between a proximal-most position in which the anvil and cartridge arm can pivot between open-most and closed-most positions, and a distal-most position in which the distal end of the support engages at least at a mid-portion of the end effector to prevent deflection of the anvil when at least one staple is driven from the cartridge arm and deformed against the anvil. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 19, 20, 23, 24)
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8. A surgical stapler, comprising:
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a cartridge arm adapted to hold a plurality of staples; an anvil having proximal and distal ends, the proximal end being coupled to the cartridge arm at a pivot point, the anvil in a torqued configuration when a plurality of staples are driven from the cartridge arm and deformed against the anvil, and being in a non-torqued configuration when no staples are driven against the anvil; and a support coupled to the anvil and moveable between a proximal position and distal position, the support adapted to contact the anvil at a location distal to the pivot point to reduce deflection of the anvil in the torqued configuration relative to the non-torqued configuration, the support in the distal position (i) contacting at least a portion of the anvil at a location closer to the distal end of the anvil relative to when the support is in the proximal position, and, (ii) urging the anvil and cartridge arm toward a closed position. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 21, 22, 25)
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Specification