Extension cutting blade

• US 8,231,620 B2
• Filed: 02/10/2009
• Issued: 07/31/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Covidien LP (Medtronic Plc)
• Original Assignee: Tyco Healthcare Group LP (Medtronic Plc)
• Inventors: Mathonnet, Olivier
• Primary Examiner(s): Koharski, Christopher D
• Assistant Examiner(s): CHANDER, DIVA KAKAR
• Application Number:
  US12/368,463
• Publication Number:
  US 20100204696A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,267 Days
• Field of Search: 606/45, 606/47
• US Class Current: 606/47
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/1445 at the distal end of a shaft, e.g. forceps or scissors at the end of a rigid rod
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/1482 having a long rigid shaft for accessing the inner body transcutaneously in minimal invasive surgery, e.g. laparoscopy
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/1492 having a flexible, catheter-like structure, e.g. for heart ablation A61B18/1477 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00867 shape memory effect for prostheses A61F2210/0014
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/1465 Deformable electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2201/12 Shape memory

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to an apparatus, a system, and a method of electrosurgery to maximize the manipulability of instrumentation inserted at a single access point.

Claims

1. An electrosurgical system, comprising:

an electrosurgical generator;

an electrosurgical instrument adapted to operably couple to the electrosurgical generator and having a contourable shaft including a distal end and a proximal end;

at least one electrode located proximate the distal end of the shaft, wherein the shaft is selectively contourable to maximize the manipulability of the shaft when used with other instruments during a single laparoscopic surgery; and

a database of shaft configurations determined by a permutation of variables.

2. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 1, wherein the variables are selected from the group consisting of an instrument, a shaft diameter, a location of an incision, a size of an incision, a number of instruments to be inserted into an incision, and a user'"'"'s hand size.

3. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 1, further comprising a template having a curve representative of a shaft configuration displayed thereon.

4. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 1, further comprising a template including a surface having a plurality of apertures configured as a grid adapted for the reception of at least one peg, wherein the at least one peg is adapted to receive an electrosurgical instrument shaft.

5. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 4, wherein the placement of pegs is determined by the database of shaft configurations.

6. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 1, further comprising a template adapted to adjust the shape of the shaft, the template comprising:

a first surface and a second surface, wherein the first surface is not parallel to the second surface;

an opening defined in the first surface configured to receive the shaft;

an aperture defined in the second surface configured to receive a screw for applying pressure to the shaft at a predetermined point.

7. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 6, further comprising a screw configured to operably engage the aperture having a marking on a thread thereof to indicate the depth of the screw within the aperture.

8. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 6, wherein the database includes a screw depth.

9. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 1, wherein the shaft is selectively contourable to form a contour selected from the group consisting of generally S shaped shafts, generally U shaped shafts, generally W shaped shafts, and generally sinusoidal shaped shafts.

10. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 1, wherein the shaft is selectively contourable to form two generally right angles defined therein.

11. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 1, wherein the shaft is made from a shape memory material.

12. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 1, wherein the shaft includes a series of joints.

13. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 1, wherein the shaft includes a helical coil.

14. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 1, wherein a handle is coupled to the shaft at a proximal end thereof, the handle being movable relative to the shaft.

15. The electrosurgical system in accordance with claim 1, wherein the shaft is sufficiently rigid to resist application of ordinary forces and torques applied during an electrosurgical procedure.

16. A method of adjusting a contour of a shaft of an electrosurgical instrument to maximize manipulability of the instrument when used for an electrosurgical procedure, comprising the steps of:

determining values for variables including instrument type, instrument number, number of instruments, and diameter of instrument shafts;

inputting the values of the variables into a database;

selecting an appropriate contour from the database'"'"'s recommended contours; and

adjusting the contour of the shaft to correspond with one of the recommended contours.

17. The method of claim 16 further comprising the step of:

using a template to adjust the contour of the shaft.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the template includes a contour displayed on a surface.

19. The method of claim 17 wherein the template includes:

a surface having a plurality of apertures configured as a grid adapted for the reception of pegs, wherein the pegs are adapted for the reception of an electrosurgical instrument shaft.

20. The method of claim 17 wherein the template includes:

a surface adapted for receiving a shaft of an electrosurgical instrument; and

a series of apertures adapted to receive screws along a non-parallel surface thereof for applying pressure to the shaft along predetermined points.

21. The method of claim 16 wherein the database includes:

a list of preferred shapes for an electrosurgical shaft corresponding to a permutation of variables selected from the group consisting of instrument type, instrument model, shaft diameter, number of instruments, location of incision, size of incision, and physical characteristics of a user.