Patent ID: 9662205
Date: 2017-05-30
CPC Classifications: A61B,A61F

Claim:
1. A device for gathering tissue of a heart valve leaflet, the device comprising: an outer tube extending in an elongated direction; a capture tool moveable in the outer tube between a contained position and a use position, the capture tool including two grasping members that are independently moveable relative to one another in the elongated direction and separable from the outer tube, each grasping member having a barb at each of two opposing ends thereof, the grasping members being operable to capture tissue of the heart valve leaflet therebetween with a first one of the grasping members located distally of the captured tissue with its barbs facing proximally and the second one of the grasping members located proximally of the captured tissue with its barbs facing distally and to draw the captured tissue into the outer tube in a gathered configuration so that the capture tool and the captured tissue collectively form a captured assembly; two actuation rods, each actuation rod being longitudinally slidable within the outer tube and adapted to be removably coupled to a respective one of the grasping members; and a tissue securing component disposed at a distal end of the outer tube and separable from the outer tube, the tissue securing component and the capture tool adapted to be separated from the outer tube together, the tissue securing component adapted to be applied to the captured assembly at least partially surrounding the capture tool to maintain the captured tissue in the gathered configuration, the tissue securing component being a locking ring that is configured to slide over at least one of the grasping members to lock the grasping members into the V-shape and to retain the captured tissue in the gathered configuration, wherein each grasping member is moveable between a retracted position in which the grasping member lies within the outer tube, and a deployed position in which the grasping member lies outside of the outer tube, each grasping member having a V-shape in the retracted position and extending substantially in a linear direction in the deployed position.