Clamp for holding surgical lines

A scissors-type surgical clamp is disclosed, characterized by a recess-defining offset in the clamping portion thereof for holding suction lines, electrical lines, and the like. The clamp includes a pair of resilient, coplanar arm members which are pivotally connected for relative displacement between open and closed positions about a pivot axis arranged normal to the plane defined by the arm members. Each of the arm members includes gripping and clamping portions on opposite sides of the pivot axis. A locking device is provided to lock the gripping portions of the arm members together in a resiliently deformed overcenter condition in which the arm member clamping portions are forced together. The offset is provided in the clamping portion of one of the arm members and extends in a direction normal to the plane of the arm members to define at least one recess having a depth greater than the thickness of the clamping portion of the other arm member. When a suction line or the like is arranged in the recess and when the gripping portions of the clamp are locked together to secure the clamping portions to a surgical curtain or the like, the suction line is retained in the recess by the offset of the one arm member and by the clamping portion of the other arm member.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
During the performance of a surgical operation, a number of surgical lines 
are present to assist the surgeon. Generally, a suction line is provided 
for withdrawing fluids and debris from the surgical site together with 
electrical lines for delivering electrical current to cauteries, lamps and 
the like. Gas lines may also be provided. Normally, the surgical lines are 
either held by a nurse or other surgical assistant, or they are allowed to 
dangle on the floor of the operating room so that they do not hinder the 
surgeon. 
The present invention relates to a clamp for holding surgical lines such as 
suction lines, electrical lines, and the like to prevent them from falling 
to the unsterile floor of the operating room(where they are likely to be 
stepped on or tripped over )without the aid of a nurse or other surgical 
assistant. 
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART 
Surgical clamps for gripping towels, sterile articles and the like are 
well-known in the patented prior art as evidenced by the patents to Wilson 
U.S. Pat. No. 2,111,161, Thomas U.S. Pat. No. 2,977,150, Sklar U.S. Pat. 
No. 3,646,939, and Freeborn U.S. Pat. No. 3,921,640. While the prior 
clamps normally operate quite satisfactorily and are still in use today, 
they have the inherent drawback of not being able to retain surgical lines 
unless the lines are tied about the clamp. 
Accordingly, various clamps were developed for retaining surgical lines as 
shown by the patents to Housepian U.S. Pat. No. 2,468,823 and Ericson U.S. 
Pat. No. 3,786,815. A significant drawback of these retaining clamps is 
that they do not retain the lines flush against the surgical curtain to 
which the clamps are secured. In the Housepian clamp, for example, the 
lines which are to be retained extend from the clamp parallel to the pivot 
axis thereof. Thus when the clamp is arranged flush against the surgical 
curtain, the line extends outwardly therefrom. Conversely, when the line 
is arranged against the curtain, the handle of the clamp extends outwardly 
therefrom. Such an arrangement results in a protruding obstruction which 
hinders the work of the surgeon and the surgical assistants. A further 
drawback of the prior devices is that, in order to secure the clamp to the 
surgical curtain, the line holder pinches or constricts the line. In the 
case of a suction line, where the line is constricted, the amount of 
suction will be significantly reduced. Constriction of electrical lines 
will damage the insulation layer and eventually result in a short in the 
line or an electrical shock to the surgeon. 
The present invention was developed to overcome these and other drawbacks 
of the prior devices by providing a surgical clamp for holding surgical 
lines and the like wherein the clamp and lines are arranged flush against 
the surgical curtain to which the clamp is secured, and further wherein 
pinching of the lines is avoided. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a 
surgical clamp for holding surgical lines including a pair of generally 
coplanar resilient arm members pivotally connected together intermediate 
their ends. The arm members are pivotally displaced between open and 
closed conditions relative to each other about a pivot axis normal to the 
plane defined by the arm members and include corresponding clamping and 
gripping portions on opposite sides of the pivot axis, respectively. A 
locking device is provided on the arm members for locking the gripping 
portions together in a resiliently deformed overcenter condition in which 
the clamping portions are tightly forced together. The clamping portion of 
one of the arm members includes an offset portion that is offset in a 
direction normal to the plane of the arm members. The offset portion 
defines at least one recess having a depth greater than the thickness of 
the clamping portion of the other arm member. When a surgical line is 
arranged in the recess and the gripping portions are locked together with 
a surgical curtain arranged between the clamping portions, the surgical 
line is retained within the recess adjacent the surgical curtain by the 
offset portion of the one arm member and by the clamping portion of the 
other arm member. 
According to a further object of the invention, the recess has a generally 
U-shaped configuration and an inner diameter corresponding with the outer 
diameter of the surgical line to be retained therein. 
According to another object of the invention, the offset portion defines a 
plurality of recesses, each having an inner diameter corresponding with 
the outer diameter of one of a plurality of surgical lines, whereby a 
plurality of lines may simultaneously be retained. 
According to yet another object of the invention, the offset portion 
includes projections which extend into the recesses for retaining the 
lines.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
The surgical clamp 2 according to the subject invention is shown in FIGS. 1 
and 2. The clamp is formed from a pair of coplanar arm members 4 and 6 
which are pivotally connected in scissors-like fashion by a pin 8 about a 
pivot axis which extends normal to the plane defined by the arm members. 
The arm members both include corresponding gripping and clamping portions 
on opposite sides of the pivot pin 8. More particularly the first arm 
member 4 includes a gripping portion 10 and a clamping portion 12, while 
the second arm member 6 includes a gripping portion 14 and a clamping 
portion 16. Each gripping portion includes an opening 18 adapted to 
receive the finger of the surgeon or other user of the clamp, and each 
clamping portion includes at its remote end a clamping tip 20. 
Owing to the pivotal connection, the arm members are operable for relative 
pivotal displacement between an open condition as shown in FIG. 2 and a 
closed position wherein the gripping portions of the clamp are brought 
together. As is evident from FIG. 2, the arm members 4 and 6 are slightly 
bowed inwardly and thus have a convex, as opposed to linear, 
configuration. Moreover, each arm member is slightly resilient. Therefore, 
when the gripping portions 10 and 14 are brought closer together beyond 
the closed condition, they are resiliently deformed into an overcenter 
condition in which the clamping portions 12 and 16 of the clamp, and thus 
the clamping tips 20, are tightly forced together as shown in FIG. 1. 
The gripping portion 10 of the first arm member 4 includes an inwardly 
extending first locking device 22 adjacent the opening 18 and the gripping 
portion 14 of the second arm member 6 includes a corresponding inwardly 
extending locking device 24. The locking devices are arranged in 
overlapping relation when the gripping portions are brought into the 
overcenter condition. The opposing surfaces 26 of the locking devices are 
serrated and adapted for interlocking to lock the gripping portions in the 
overcenter condition, whereby the clamping portions are forced together. 
Preferably, the serrations of the opposed surfaces are arranged at an 
angle to assist in retaining the gripping portions of the clamp in the 
locked condition. The gripping portions may be unlocked by disengaging the 
opposed serrated edges of the locking devices. 
The characterizing feature of the present invention is the provision of an 
offset portion 28 extending from the clamping portion of one of the arm 
members in a direction normal to the plane of the arm members. In the 
drawing, the offset portion 28 is shown as extending from the clamping 
portion 12 of the first arm member 4. It will be appreciated to those 
skilled in the art that the offset could alternatively be arranged in the 
clamping portion 16 of the second arm member. The offset portion defines a 
recess 30 which is adapted to receive a surgical line 32 such as an 
electrical line. A second offset portion 34 may also be provided to define 
a second recess 36 adapted to receive a second surgical line 38 such as a 
suction line. 
FIGS. 3a-3d illustrate various alternate embodiments of the offset portion 
28. The embodiment shown in FIG. 3a corresponds with that shown in FIG. 1. 
The recesses 30 and 36 each have a generally U-shaped configuration and 
have a depth d greater than the thickness t of the clamping portion 16 of 
the second arm member 6. The depth of the second recess 36 is greater than 
the depth of the first recess 30 so that surgical lines of different outer 
diameters may be retained by the clamp. More particularly, the recesses 
are designed to have an inner diameter x which corresponds with the outer 
diamter of the line to be retained. 
In operation, the surgical lines to be retained are arranged in the 
recesses of the appropriate size and the clamping tips 20 are arranged on 
opposite sides of a portion of the surgical curtain which is arranged 
about the patient. The gripping portions 10 and 14 are locked together in 
the overcenter condition by the locking devices to force the clamping tips 
20 together to clamp the clamp 2 to the surgical curtain. To assist in 
gripping the curtain, the clamping tips are serrated or knurled at their 
outer edges as shown by reference numeral 40 shown in FIG. 3a. Since the 
pivot axis of the arm members is arranged normal to the plane defined by 
the arm members, the gripping portions 10 and 14 of the arm members 4 and 
6, respectively, lie flush against the surgical curtain. More 
particularly, since the offset portions 28 and 34 extend normal to the 
plane of the arm members, the surgical lines 32 and 38 extend tranversely 
through the clamp and are also arranged flush against the surgical 
curtain. With this construction, neither the clamp nor the surgical lines 
extend outwardly from the curtain to form an obstruction which would 
hinder the performance of the surgeon. 
As shown in the drawing, the surgical lines are retained in the recess by 
the offset portions 28 and 34 of the clamping portion 12 of the first arm 
member and by the clamping portion 16 of the second arm member 6. Since 
the inner diameters of the recesses are adapted to correspond with the 
outer diameters of the lines, the lines are retained within the recesses 
without being constricted or pinched. Moreover, the lines may be freely 
displaced laterally through the recesses in accordance with the 
requirements of the surgeon in the performance of the surgical operation. 
To assist in retaining the lines within the recesses, each offset portion 
may contain one or more inwardly extending projections 42 as shown in FIG. 
3b. The projections are adapted to retain the lines at spaced areas about 
the circumference thereof. 
The preferred construction of the offset portion is shown in FIGS. 3c and 
3d. There, a single offset portion 44 is provided which contains a 
plurality of recesses 46 for receiving a plurality of lines. In the 
embodiment of FIG. 3c, three recesses are provided, and the inner 
diameters of successive recesses increase in the direction of the pivot 
axis. Thus, for example, the first recess 46a is adapted to retain an 
electrical surgical line, the second recess 46b is adapted to retain a gas 
supply line or the like, and the third recess 46c is adapted to retain a 
suction line. 
FIG. 3c also illustrates an alternative embodiment of the clamping tips 20a 
wherein the tips are ovaloid in configuration and contain a central 
opening 20b. 
In the embodiment of FIG. 3d, the offset portion 48 defines a plurality of 
recesses 50 which are generally of the same size and are adapted to 
receive surgical lines such as those required for arthroscopy. 
The provision of a single block-shaped offset portion containing one or 
more recesses as shown in FIGS. 3c and 3d is characterized by increased 
structural strength as opposed to the offset portions illustrated in FIGS. 
3a and 3b. The increased strength is particularly important when the clamp 
is molded from a nylon/synthetic plastic material having the appropriate 
degree of resiliency. 
The clamp may also be molded from stainless steel material which is 
suitable for use with all configuration of the offset portion. 
Since each embodiment of the clamp differs only in the type of offset 
portion provided on the clamping portion of the second arm member, a 
universal clamp mold may be provided to form the clamp, with 
interchangeable molds being provided for the offset containing clamping 
portion of the second arm member, whereby the molded clamps will be formed 
with the desired configuration of the offset portion defining the recesses 
of the desired number and size. 
It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that configurations of 
the offset portion other than those illustated in the drawing may be 
provided to retain the lines required for other surgical procedures 
including the implantation of pacemakers and the like. 
While in accordance with the provisions of the Patent Statutes the 
preferred forms and embodiments of the subject invention have been 
illustrated and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art 
that various changes and modifications may be made without deviating from 
the inventive concepts set forth above.