Patent ID: 11857445
Assignee: BOEHRINGER LABORATORIES LLC
Field: Medical technology (Instruments)
Classification: CPC A | IPC A

Claim 0:
1. A system for sizing a patient's stomach for a bariatric procedure, the patient's stomach having a lesser curvature and a greater curvature, said system comprising:
a sizing tube configured for introduction through the esophagus of the patient into the patient's stomach with a portion of said sizing tube disposed along the lesser curvature of the patient's stomach, said sizing tube comprising an elongated tubular member having a central longitudinal axis, a hollow interior extending about said central longitudinal axis, and a sidewalk including a portion configured for extending the entire length of the lesser curvature of the patient's stomach and bent into a curved shape directly engaging the lesser curvature of the patient's stomach, said sidewall being formed of a flexible non-expandable material to enable said sidewall to bend into said curved shape to conform with the lesser curvature of the patient's stomach, said sidewall including a plurality of apertures extending through said sidewall in an array extending about the entire periphery of said sidewall, whereupon, said array extending from a point adjacent said distal free end to an intermediate point located between said distal free end and a proximal end portion, said plurality of apertures being in fluid communication with said hollow interior of said sizing tube, said sizing tube being configured to have controlled suction applied to said hollow interior of said sizing tube and through said array to apply suction to the lesser curvature of the patient's stomach and portions of the patient's stomach between said sizing tube and the greater curvature of the patient's stomach to bring those portions of the patient's stomach into close engagement with the periphery of said sizing tube, whereupon said sizing tube can be used as a guide to enable the patient's stomach to be sized therealong, with said controlled suction as applied by said array holding said sizing tube in place in said curved shape against the lesser curvature of the patient's stomach.