US3589589A - Surgical instrument for stitching tissues by means of staples - Google Patents

Abstract

A surgical instrument comprises a support body with an open longitudinal channel, in which are respectively superposed the rod of a pusher member and the rod of a staple housing. A replaceable magazine with staples is secured to a head of the staple housing and drives are provided for moving the staple housing and pusher conjointly to clamp the tissue between the magazine and a jaw on the support body and for thereafter displacing the pusher relative to the staple housing to force staples from the magazine into the tissue.

Description

United StatesPatent 3,59fi89 [72] lnventor Ernest Mikhailovich Akopov [56] Referen es Cited gilsmswavsky pereulok, 9/2, Kv.6, MOSCOW, UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,891,250 6/1959 Nirata 227/19 UX gff 233:; 1968 3,080,564 3/1963 Strekopitov et al 227/19 ux [45] Patemed June 1971 3,252,643 5/1966 Strekopitov et al 227/19 X [32] Priority sepL 1967 3,275,211 9/1966 Hirsch et al 227/19 X [33] U.S.S.R. Primary Examiner-Granville Y Custer, Jr. [31 1184885 Att0rney-Waters, Roditi, Schwartz & Nissen ABSTRACT: A surgical instrument comprises a support body SURGICAL NSTRUMENT FOR STITCHING with an open longitudinal channel, in which are respectively TISSUES BY MEANS OFSTAPLES 8 Claims, 16 Drawing Figs.

[52] US. Cl 227/153,

227/19 [5 1] Int.Cl 825C 5/02 [50] Field of Search 227/19 superposed the rod of a pusher member and the rod of a staple housing. A replaceable magazine with staples is secured to a head of the staple housing and drives are provided for moving the staple housing and pusher conjointly to clamp the tissue between the magazine and a jaw on the support body and for thereafter displacing the pusher relative to the staple housing to force staples from the magazine into the tissue.

t Mim 47 9/ M7156 r" 9 e 4 1 (If 1 ..1 J W! W 5 V11 3 I 36 v- -"n" I I l .J

PATENTEU JUN29 I97l SHEET 1 BF 4 FIG. 7

PATENTEU JUNZ IBH 3,589,589

' SHEEI h 0F 4 FIG. 15

SURGICAL INSTRUMENT FOR STITCIIING TISSUES BY MEANS OF STAPLES The present invention relates to surgical instruments for stitching tissues by means of staples, and is designed for momentary suturing of tissues and organs with lateral and iongitudinal disposition of the stitches e.g. when stitching a bronchial stump, lungs or other organs and tissues during surgical operations. 7

Instruments for stitching tissues by means of staples are known in the prior art (see, for example, the US. Pat. .No.

These instruments usually comprise a support body with a longitudinal slot; a perforated jaw for deforming staples; the said jaw being mounted on the said support body; a staple housing having a head and a rod (the rod is provided with a longitudinal aperture and mounted in the longitudinal slot of the support body); a replaceable magazine loaded with staples and mounted in the head of the staple housing; the said magazine being fixed against displacement in the lateral and longitudinal directions; a pusher with ahead for forcing out the staples from the magazine and with a rod which is placed into a longitudinal guide aperture of the staple housing rod at the side of thestaple housing head; a screw drive of the staple housing and a lever drive of the pusher provided with a stop spring; a fixing device preventing accidental rejectionof the staples from the magazine; and a handle for holding the instrument.

The principle of stitching tissues by this instrument consists in that the staples charged into the magazine are forced out by the pusher and after piercing the tissues converted into stitches of a surgical suture with the aid of a perforated jaw.

However, the prior art instruments are complicated in assembling and disassembling. During the assembling, for example, the pusher rod is to be introduced through the head of the staple housing into the elongated longitudinal guide aperture in the staple housing rod having a small cross section and a length which considerably exceeds the working stroke of the pusher. Thereafter, the staple housing is mounted in the longitudinal slot of the supporting body, then the staple housing and pushermust be coupled with the movable component of the pusher drive (for example, with a movable hand of a lever drive), for which purpose the working end of the handle must be introduced intothe'a'perture of the pusher rod through a small hole provided in the staple housing. Thereupon the movable handle is fixed in the initial position by turning the stop abutment. (Disassembling of the instruments is carried out in reverse sequence).

The presence of deep and blind holes and slots in the components of the known instruments, for example, in the staple housing or the handles of the pusher lever drive is disadvantageous in that the cleaning and sterilizating of the instruments is rendered inconvenient and difficult. These deep and blind holes .result in a considerable complication of the process of manufacture of thecomponents of the instruments, thus increasing the cost of production.

Moreover, the prior art instruments with a constant pusher need individual adjustment of thereplaceable magazines 7 because of considerable errors in the mutual positioning of the magazine and the pusher head in the lateral direction due to the fact that the magazine and pusher are mounted in the staple housing independently of each other. Such an arrangement precludes the possibility of using single-use plastic magazines and increases the cost of production.

The prior art instruments are also inconvenient in handling because they need a special fixing device to stop the pusher mechanism. For example, if the movable handle of the pusher lever drive used for holding the instrument is not stopped in the initial position during the operation it may turn relative to the stationary handle of the instrument and actuate the pusher to reject the staples into the incision.

Furthermore, the instruments heretofore known have components subject to failure and breakdown, for example, small members of the fixing device and flat springs.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide a medical instrument, simple in construction and reliable in operation, for stitching tissues by means of staples which can be quickly assembled and disassembled through simple and convenient manipulations. The components of the instrument do not have deep and blind holes and slots. The fitting of the magazine in the instrument with a constant pusher provides for the possibility of using replaceable magazines. According to this and other objects, the invention contemplates application of a surgical instrument for stitching tissues by means of staples, which instrument incorporates a support body with an open-type longitudinal channel; a jaw secured to the support body; a staple housing and a pusher mounted in the above-mentioned channel for displacement; a magazine with staples secured to a head of the staple housing; drivesfor actuating the staple housing and pusher for clamping the tissues to be stitched and for forcing out the staples from the magazine and, wherein, according to the invention, the staple housing and the pusher are superposed, one being mounted at the bottom of the channel, the other being placed thereabove, the aforesaid components being adaptable for separation in the lateral direction.

In order to provide interchangeability of the magazines, it is advisable to mount the magazine on the pusher head to prevent lateral displacements of the magazine and on the staple housing head to prevent relative longitudinal displacements.

The staple housing and the pusher are preferably provided with rods shaped as'bars of a rectangular cross section, which bars are in contact with the sidewalls of the longitudinal channel in the support body.

The head of the staple housing is preferably provided with a slot whose opening receives the pusher.

The support body and the upper rod mounted on the lower rod and entering the slot of the supporting body are preferably provided with common longitudinal guides whose length is approximately equal to the working stroke of the upper rod.

It is expedient to use screw mechanisms with parallel axes as drives of the staple housing and pusher, a handle of the pusher drive being movably connected to its rotary component.

Given hereinbelow is a detailed description of an embodiment of the present invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the instrument according to the invention; I

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the instrument according to the invention;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the instrument according to the invention with a stitcher unit for suturing organs with a lateral arrangement of stitches;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the instrument according to the invention taken on the line lV-IV, of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged diagrammatic view of the staple groove and the pusher plate, according to the invention;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the instrument according to the invention, taken on the line VI-VI of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the instrument according to the invention, taken on the line VII-VII of FIG. 3;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view of the instrument according to the invention, taken on the line VIII-VIII of FIG. 3;

FIG. 9 is a sectional view of the instrument according to the invention, taken on the line IX-IX of FIG. 3;

FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the stitcher unit of the instrument according to the invention for suturing organs in a double-row longitudinal arrangement of the stitches;

FIG. 11 is a sectional view of the instrument, according to the invention, taken on the line XI-Xl of FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is a rear view of the magazine of the instrument, according to the invention, with a double-row longitudinal arrangement of the staple grooves;

FIG. 13 is a sectional view of the instrument, according to the invention, taken on the line Xlll-Xlll of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a plan view of the pusher comb of the stitcher unit of the instrument according to the invention, for suturing organs with a longitudinal arrangement of the stitches;

H0. 15 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the magazine and the pusher plates of the stitcher unit for suturing organs in a double-row longitudinal arrangement of the stitches, according to the invention; and

FIG. 16 shows an exploded view of the instrument according to the invention.

Due to the fact that instruments of this type are basically employed for making sutures of two types, i.e. with a longitudinal or lateral arrangement of stitches, two modifications of stitcher units of the instrument have been proposed. The difference between these modifications, however, is not significant to the principal concept of the invention.

The surgical instrument for stitching tissues by means of staples (FIG. 1) comprises a supporting body 1, aperforated jaw 2 secured to the supporting body, astaple magazine 3, reciprocably movable staple housing 4, apusher 5, anut 6 for a screw drive of the staple housing, anut 7, ahandle 8 for holding the instrument and alimiter 9 for fixing the tissues to be stapled between thejaw 2 andmagazine 3 during their clamping.

The support body 1 has an open longitudinal channel 10 with abottom 11 andsidewalls 12. The pusher is installed on thebottom 11 of the channel 10, the staple housing 4 being mounted above the pusher S. Thebottom 11 has anopening 13 at the rear portion of the supporting body 1 for passage ofhandle 8 for holding the instrument. Thesidewalls 12 of the channel of the support body have pairs oflongitudinal guide grooves 14 and 15 whose length is approximately equal to the working stroke of the staple housing 4 which, in turn, corresponds to the distance between the two positions of the staple housing 4 within the supporting body 1. The first, initial working position is defined by the gap between thejaw 2 and themagazine 3 suitable for receiving the tissues or organs to be stitched between the jaw and the magazine prior to the clamping of these tissues or organs. The second, final working position of the staple housing 4 in the supporting body 1 is defined by a minimum stitching gap between thejaw 2 and themagazine 3 corresponding to the least possible thickness of the clamped tissues. Theguide grooves 15 have lateral walls 16 (FIGS. 1, 2) for limiting the stroke of the staple housing 4 upon reaching the minimum stitching gap.

In the rear portion, the support body 1 is limited by alateral wall 17 having anopen slot 18 into which is inserted thenut 6 of the drive of the staple housing 4.

The staple housing 4 includes ahead 19, a rod 20 and ascrew 21 rigidly connected together, the axis of thescrew 21 being parallel to that of the rod 20. The housing 4 further includes ayoke 22 withlugs 23 facing thepusher 5 and two pairs ofguide projections 24 and 25 Thehead 19 of the staple housing 4 has a throughslot 26 open both at the side of themagazine 3 and at the side of thepusher 5. Thepusher 5 is introduced into thelower portion 26 ofslot 26 from below.Cheeks 27 of thehead 19 of the staple housing 4 are provided with L-shaped slots 28 (FIG. 1) for holding themagazine 3 in the longitudinal direction. Thechecks 27 also have longitudinal slots 29 (FIG. 4) for holding thelimiter 9.

The rod 20 of the staple housing 4 is a solid bar with a rectangular cross section. It has a transverse window 30 with a wall 31 for limiting the stroke ofthepusher 5 and a pin 32 with a head. Thelimiter 9 is guided by engagement in theslots 29 in thehead 19 of the staple housing 4 and by engagement with the head of pin 32.

The staple housing 4 is placed together with thepusher 5 and thenut 6 and inserted into the supporting body 1, theguide projections 24, 25 being opposite theslots 14 and 15 of the supporting body 1 in this position. The connection of the supporting body 1 and the staple housing 4 andpusher 5 is made nondetachable in the direction of the longitudinal channel 10 of the supporting body 1, by displ icing the staple housing 4 a small distance from the initial p( sition to advance theprojections 24, 25 into thegrooves 14, 15 of the supporting body 1. ln this case, theprojections 24, 25 of the staple housing 4 enter theguide grooves 14, 15 of the supporting body 1 and secure the staple housing 4 andp usher 5 between theupper surfaces 33, 34 of thegrooves 14, 15 and the bottom 11 of the longitudinal channel 10.

Theguide projections 25 of the staple housing 4 limit the stroke of the staple housing 4 by bearing against thelateral walls 16 of theguide grooves 15 in the supporting body 1.

Thepusher 5 comprises ahead 35 and arod 36 rigidly connected together. Therod 36 is rigidly connected to thehandle 8 which carries ascrew 37 having an axis parallel to that of thescrew 21 of the staple housing 4, Anabutment 38 is secured torod 36 and is engaged in window 30 of housing 4 to limit the extreme working position of thepusher 5 by engagement with the wall 31 of the window 30.

Thehead 35 is made in the form ofa monolithic plate with a solid workingface 39 for the simultaneous expulsion of all the staples from the magazine when the instrument if to be used for stitching tissues with a lateral arrangement of the stitches.

Therod 36 of the pusher has a square cross section and its width is equal to the width of the rod 20 of the staple housing 4, said width being equal to the width of the channel 10 in the supporting body 1 so that therod 36 and the rod 20 contact thewalls 12 of the channel 10 and are guided by these walls in a horizontal plane. The bottom 11 of the channel 10 and the lower surface of the rod 20 guide thepusher 5 in a vertical plane when the pusher moves along the channel 10 to force the staples out of themagazine 3.

Thenut 6 of the drive of the staple housing 4 is screwed on thescrew 21 and anannular groove 40 innut 6 is engaged inslot 18 inlateral wall 17 of the supporting body 1. Such a position of thenut 6 ensures the provision of agap 41 in the longitudinal direction between thecheeks 27 of thehead 19 of the staple housing 4 and the supporting body 1. This gap compensates for possible manufacturing errors of thenut 6, support body 1 and staple housing 4.

Thenut 7 of the pusher drive is screwed on thescrew 37, thelugs 23 of theyoke 22 of the staple housing entering the annular groove of thenut 7 from above.

Thenut 7 of the drive of thepusher 5 is pivotally connected by anaxle 43 to thehandle 44 of the drive of thepusher 5. In the nonoperating position, thehandle 44 is positioned as shown in solid lines in FIG. 3 and this allows for compact arrangement of the drives of the staple housing 4 andpusher 5 and convenient control of these drives in parallel disposition of the screw mechanisms of the instrument.

In order to prevent an accidental ejection of the staples from themagazine 3, thenut 7 of the pusher drive is locked so as to prevent turning. Themovable handle 44 of thenut 7 of the drive of thepusher 5 is used for this purpose. When depressed, thehandle 44 enters arecess 45 in thehandle 8 and the walls of the recess prevent thehandle 44 from turning about the axis of the screw mechanism of thepusher 5. The use of thehandle 44 andnut 7 for fixing thepusher 5 against accidental displacements precludes the need of a special locking device as used in the known instruments.

In the fixed position of thehandle 44, a space 46 is formed between the face of thenut 7 and the flange of thescrew 37, and a space 47 is formed between thehead 35 of thepusher 5 and thehead 19 of the staple housing 4. These spaces are provided to compensate for possible error that may occur in manufacturing the staple housing 4, thepusher 5, and thenut 7 of thepusher 5 in the longitudinal direction. This makes it possible to manufacture thenut 7 as an interchangeable component and to lower the requirements of the accuracy of manufacture of the staple housing 4 and thepusher 5.

The operating position of thehandle 44 is shown in FIG. 3 in dotted lines. The handle is fixed in this position by thewall 48 of theslot 49 of thenut 7, whereas in the initial position it is fixed by the inclined walls 50 of theslot 49.

Themagazine 3 for suturing tissues with a lateral arrangement of stitches is designed in the form of a frame with aper tures 51 (FIGS. 3, 4) and the magazine is fitted to thehead 35 of thepusher 5, for which purpose the depth of themagazine 3 exceeds the depth of the staples charged into the magazine. Therefore, a projecting portion of themagazine 3 at the rearward end serves for fitting themagazine 3 onhead 35 to fix themagazine 3 in the lateral direction. In order to provide quick and convenient removal of themagazine 3 from thehead 35,

themagazine 3 has abevel 52 and aprojection 53 on the 4 upper lateral wall oftheaperture 51.

For fixing themagazine 3 in the longitudinal direction, lugs 54 are provided on the magazine for entering the L-shapedslots 28 in thecheeks 27 of thehead 19 of the staple housing 4. Constructive gaps are provided between thelugs 54 of themagazine 3 and theslots 28, while between the lateral walls of themagazine 3 and thecheeks 27 of the head of the staple housing there are providedgaps 56 compensating for the er rors of the mutual disposition of the pusher head and the head of the staple housing in the transverse direction.

The legs of the staples (not shown on the drawings) are in serted into the paired grooves 57 (FIG. 5) of the open staple slots in the opposite longitudinal walls of themagazine 3, the backs of the staples being in the plane of theapertures 51 in themagazine 3.

In order to ensure the reliable fixing of themagazine 3 rela tive to thejaw 2, themagazine 3 is provided in the lateral direction with open-type staple slots whoselongitudinal walls 58 are not solid but provided withadditional windows 59, whereas the pusher head is equipped withplates 60 whose thickness exceeds the width of the staple slots. Theplates 60 enter thewindows 59.

In the case ofa lateral arrangement of the staple slots in the magazine, theadditional windows 59 are combined into a single throughport 51 common for all the slots of the magazine (FIG. 4), whereas the separate plates 60 (FIG. 5) of the pusher are combined into the singlemonolithic head 35 of the pusher 5 (FIG. 3) with the solid flat workingface 39. Such a construction of themagazine 3 andhead 35 as well as the re liability of fixing themagazine 3 relative to thejaw 2 and of forcing out the staples from the magazine make it possible to eliminate any unfavorable effect of errors due to the incorrect mutual disposition of the slots and plates in the case of separate plates, corresponding to each staple slot, upon the interchangeability of the magazines.

The stitcher unit of an instrument for suturing tissues with a double-row longitudinal arrangement of stitches with the rows displaced, comprises a jaw 61 (FIG. l0, 11), amagazine 62 and apusher head 63 which are somewhat modified as compared with the above-described construction due to the specific features of the double-row arrangement of the staple slots. However, the construction of the magazine installed on the pusher head as well as that of the whole instrument is sub stantially the same.

Staple slots 64 in themagazine 62 are of open type similar to those in the magazine 3 (FIG. 3) in their lateral arrangement. The rear part of themagazine 62 is provided with aspecial aperture 65 for fitting the magazine on the pusher head 63 (FIG. Thewalls 66, 67 (FIGS. 12, I3) of the magazine aperture are in the same plane as the external walls of the auxiliary windows of the extreme staple slots 64 and serve as guides when mounting the magazine on theplates 68 ofcombs 69 of thepusher head 63.

Thepusher head 63 is rigidly connected to thepusher rod 36 and consists of aholder 70 which is rigidly secured to twocombs 69 having an identical construction but reversed relative to each other in accordance with the disposition of the staple slots 64 in the magazine. Theplates 68 of thecombs 69 have a rectangular cross section and correspond to the auxiliary windows of the staple slots overlapping the latter by the thickness. In order to eliminate the effect of the errors, caused by incorrect mutual disposition of the magazine slots and the plates of the pusher head, upon the interchangeability of the magazines it is advisable to provideconstructive gaps 72 between the walls of theauxiliary windows 71 of the magazine slots and theplates 68 which do not lay in a common plane with the basic matchedwalls 66 and 67 of the magazine aper ture. To provide convenient removal of themagazine 62 from the pusher head, themagazine 62 is equipped with abevel 73 and aprojection 74 on the upper lateral wall of the aperture 65 (FIG. 10).

Thelimiter 9 is made in the form of a bent strip with a throughslot 75 and a hole 76 corresponding to the size of the head of the guide pin 32 of the staple housing 4. It is slidably mounted on the staple housing 4 and itsfront end 77 is fixed in the lateral directions by theslots 29 of the staple housing head and by theslot 75 is fixed by the head of guide pin 32 (FIG. 3).

Thefront end 77 of thelimiter 9 is provided with arecess 78, while theother end 79 of thelimiter 9 is upwardly bent for providing convenient movement of thelimiter 9 along the staple housing 4. In the initial position, thelimiter 9 occupies the extreme right-hand position in FIGS. 1 and 2 while in the working position, it occupies the extreme left-hand position as shown in FIG. 3.

The operation of the instrument, its assembly and disassembly are described below in conformity with the stitcher unit for suturing tissues with the lateral arrangement of the stitches. All these operations may also be related to the instruments with a stitcher unit for suturing tissues with longitudinal arrangement ofthe stitches.

The instrument operates as follows:

The tissues to be stitched are placed between thejaw 2 and themagazine 3 and are clamped in this space by moving thelimiter 9 with the aid of thebent end 79 in the direction of thejaw 2. On turning thenut 6, the staple housing 4 with themagazine 3 and thepusher 5 is moved towardsthejaw 2 and a stitching gap corresponding to the thickness of the tissues to be stitched is formed between thejaw 2 and themagazine 3.

Thereafter, thehandle 44 of the drive of thepusher 5 is moved to the working position by turning it about theaxle 43 until it bears against thewall 48 of theslot 49 of thenut 7. Thepusher 5 is moved towards thejaw 2 upon turning of thehandle 44 about the axis of thenut 7 up to the rest. Thehead 35 of thepusher 5 forces the staples out from the magazine 3 (the staples are not shown in the drawings). The staples pierce the tissues and with the help of the perforations of thejaw 2 are crimped into stitches ofa surgical suture.

After the stitching operation, thelimiter 9 is moved rearwardly to its initial position and themovable handle 44 is depressed. To remove the instrument from the stitched tispose thenut 6 is rotated in the direction opposite to the working direction.

DISASSEMBLY OF THE INSTRUMENTS During disassembly, thenuts 6, 7 are set to their initial positions by rotating them up to the rest in the direction opposite to the working stroke, thehandle 44 of the pusher drive being introduced into theslot 45 of thehandle 8 for holding the instrument, and thelimiter 9 being displaced to its initial position. Then, thehead 19 of the staple housing is engaged by two fingers of one hand and theprojection 53 of themagazine 3 is forced downwardly and forward with the forefinger of the other hand, thelugs 54 of themagazine 3 being withdrawn from the L-shapedslots 28 of thehead 19 of the staple housing 4, and themagazine 3 is removed from the instrument. Thereafter, the staple housing 4 and thepusher 5 are removed from the open channel 10 of the supporting body 1 and thenuts 6 and 7 are unscrewed, thehandle 44 being first disengaged from thehandle 8.

By displacing thelimiter 9 forwards, the opening 76 is coincided with the head of the guide pin 32 of the staple housing and, by lifting thebent end 79, thelimiter 9 is disconnected from the guide pin 32, whereas displacement of the limiter in the rearward direction removes it from thegrooves 29 of the head of the staple housing.

ASSEMBLY OF THE INSTRUMENT The assembly of the staple housing 4 with thenut 6 andlimiter 9 as well as of the pusher S with the nut '7 is effected in the reverse sequence of disassembly. The pusher is then applied against the staple housing 4 and positioned between the cheeks of thehead 19 of the staple housing 4, whereas the annular groove 42 of thenut 7 of the pusher drive enters theyoke 22 of the staple housing 4, and the housing 4 andpusher 5 are together inserted into the open channel 10 of the supporting body 1, theannular groove 40 of thenut 6 being engaged inslot 18 in the wall of the support body 1. Thereafter, themagazine 3, by itsfitting aperture 51, is installed on thehead 35 of thepusher 5. In this case, thehead 19 of the staple housing 4 is somewhat removed from thehead 35 of thepusher 5 in the direction towards the channel 10 and is closed by the L-shapedslots 28 of thehead 19 of the staple housing 4, which operation is effected automatically during the lowering of thehead 19 of the staple housing 4. By rotating thenut 6 one turn, thelugs 24, 25 are engaged in theguide grooves 14, of the support body 1. Now the instrument is ready for operation.

The advantages of the present invention consist in simple construction of the instrument and reliability in operation. The instrument is very simple to control as well as in assembly and disassembly which operations are carried out through simple manipulations. Therefore, it can easily be serviced by medical personnel having no special technical training. The instrument ensures interchangeability of the magazines and this makes it possible to use both the permanent metal magazines and plastic magazines suitable only for single use. The components of the instrument have no blind, nor inaccessible slots and apertures. This provides for convenience and simplicity in cleaning and sterilizing the instrument, improved technology of its manufacture, and reduce the cost of production. The instrument has no tiny (easy to lose) and breakable members so that it provides for a long service life.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, and therefore the invention is not limited by that which is shown in the drawings and described in the specification.

These changes and modifications are considered to fall within the scope of the present invention as defined by the ap pended claims.

What I claim is:

l. A surgical instrument for stitching tissues by means of staples, comprising a support body with an open longitudinal channel; a jaw on said support body; a staple housing with a head, said staple housing being mounted in said longitudinal channel for longitudinal displacement therein, a pusher with a head, said pusher also being mounted in said longitudinal channel for displacement therein, said staple housing and said pusher being superposed with one thereof placed at the bottom of said channel, said staple housing and pusher being separable in transverse direction; a replaceable magazine with staples secured to the head of said staple housing, first drive means for moving said staple housing and said pusher to clamp tissue between said jaw and said magazine on the head of the staple housing, and second drive means for displacing the pusher relative to the staple housing to force the staples from said magazine into the tissue, said first and second dri e means respectively including screw mechanisms arranged parallel to one another, one of said drive means including a handle movably and permanently connected to the rotary component of its screw mechanism.

2. A surgical instrument as claimed in claim 1, comprising means mounting the magazine on the pusher head to prevent relative transverse displacement thercbetween and on the staple housing so that relative movement between the magazine and the staple housing is prevented.

3. A surgical instrument as claimed in claim 1, wherein the staple housing and pusher include respective rods having rectangular cross sections and contacting the walls of the longitudinal channel of the support body.

4. A surgical instrument as claimed in claim 1, m which the head of the staple housing is provided with an open slot, said head of the pusher being slidably inserted into said slot.

5. A surgical instrument as claimed inclaim 3, in which the support body and the rods of the staple housing and the pusher arranged in said longitudinal channel thereof include longitudinal guides whose length is approximately equal to the relative displacement of the rods in a working stroke.

6. A surgical instrument as claimed in claim 1, in which the rotary component of the second dr ve means comprises a fixing device preventing turning of said rotary component when the pusher is in an initial inoperative position.

7. A surgical instrument as claimed inclaim 3, comprising a handle for holding the instrument secured to the rod of said pusher.

8. A surgical instrument as claimed inclaim 7, in which said handle of said one drive means is pivotally connected to the rotary component of its screw mechanism, said handle for holding the instrument having a recess in which the handle of said one drive means is engaged, in an initial inoperative position of the pusher, to prevent turning of the rotary element of the screw mechanism associated with said one drive means.

Claims (8)

1. A surgical instrument for stitching tissues by means of staples, comprising a support body with an open longitudinal channel; a jaw on said support body; a staple housing with a head, said staple housing being mounted in said longitudinal channel for longitudinal displacement therein, a pusher with a head, said pusher also being mounted in said longitudinal channel for displacement therein, said staple housing and said pusher being superposed with one thereof placed at the bottom of said channel, said staple housing and pusher being separable in transverse direction; a replaceable magazine with staples secured to the head of said staple housing, first drive means for moving said staple housing and said pusher to clamp tissue between said jaw and said magazine on the head of the staple housing, and second drive means for displacing the pusher relative to the staple housing to force the staples from said magazine into the tissue, said first and second drive means respectively including screw mechanisms arranged parallel to one another, one of said drive means including a handle movably and permanently connected to the rotary component of its screw mechanism.

2. A surgical instrument as claimed in claim 1, comprising means mounting the magazine on the pusher head to prevent relative transverse displacement therebetween and on the staple housing so that relative movement between the magazine and the staple housing is prevented.

3. A surgical instrument as claimed in claim 1, wherein the staple housing and pusher include respective rods having rectangular cross sections and contacting the walls of the longitudinal channel of the support body.

4. A surgical instrument as claimed in claim 1, in which the head of the staple housing is provided with an open slot, said head of the pusher being slidably inserted into said slot.

5. A surgical instrument as claimed in claim 3, in which the support body and the rods of the staple housing and the pusher arranged in said longitudinal channel thereof include longitudinal guides whose length is approximately equal to the relative displacement of the rods in a working stroke.

6. A surgical instrument as claimed in claim 1, in which the rotary component of the second drive means comprises a fixing device preventing turning of said rotary component when the pusher is in an initial inoperative position.

7. A surgical instrument as claimed in claim 3, comprising a handle for holding the instrument secured to the rod of said pusher.

8. A surgical instrument as claimed in claim 7, in which said handle of said one drive means is pivotally connected to the rotary component of its screw mechanism, said handle for holding the instrument having a recess in which the handle of said one drive means is engaged, in an initial inoperative position of the pusher, to prevent turning of the rotary element of the screw mechanism associated with said one drive means.

Images