Protective instrument for suturing

Abstract: The protective instrument for suturing is formed by a rigid longitudinally concavo-convex body member (1) having blunt edges and ends (4). It is provided with handling means (5,8), so that in use the concave portion (2) is facing the inner surface of the incision and the convex portion (3) faces the viscera, organs, vessels, nerves or other parts of the patient under operation. The purpose of the instrument is to guide the suture needle in replacement of the gloved finger of the surgeon, whereby pricks in the surgeon's finger or in the patient's viscera or other organs are avoided, preventing the infections or lesions which said pricks may cause.

Description: Background of the Invention Field of the Invention This invention relates to a protective instrument for suturing as set out in the preamble of claim 1. This instrument is particularly appropriate for protecting the surgeon's hands against possible pricks which may infect the surgeon in the case of patients suffering from infectious diseases (hepatitis, AIDS, etc) when sewing the suture for joining the two parts of an incision, as well as to avoid pricking organs, viscera or other parts underneath the said parts of the incision, as is the case of laparotomies, heart surgery, neck surgery or the like, since the tip of the needle must be detected by feeling below the first concealed portion of the wall to be joined, when this is perforated, to guide it towards the concealed portion of the second part, drawing the thread with it. When working without any instrument, only with the gloved hand, the surgeon runs a substantial risk of pricking his finger when feeling for the invisible needle tip or of pricking a viscera, a vessel or a nerve, with the possibility of causing infections or lesions, whereby means of fortune providing some degree of protection have been used. One of such means consists of using a piece of leather or the like inserted below the envolving wall, either abdominal or any other, to retain and protect the viscera, vessels, etc. Likewise narrow sheetlike valves of malleable metal of the type normally used as incision separators are applied in the same way. The need for such instrument protecting against pricks is expressed in the article by R.J. Heald, published in "The British Journal of Surgery" where, in the Spanish Edition of April 1991, page 278, third paragraph it is said, "... surgeons will have to banish the habit of using a finger of the left hand for guiding the suture needle on its way through the tissues". From GB-A-638892 an instrument according to the preamble of claim 1 is known, this document discloses a surgical instrument for episiotomies, principally designed to the insertion of sutures prior making the incision; the structure thereof is relatively complex, since it comprises a shielding element substantially planar as to width, above which there extend an elongated, scalpel and suture guide. For use, it is provided with a manipulating handle which is disposed substantially aligned with the shielding element and the scalpel guide. Both the virtual superposition of these two last elements, and the cited common orientation of the handle and of these elements, make the instrument inappropriate for sewing the suture for joining the two parts of an incision. The instrument of the present invention responds to the above mentioned criteria of protection, although at the same time an attempt is made to achieve greater security in leading the needle in both directions on the inside of the area of the patient's body where the incision to be sutured has been made, thereby improving the suturing job and providing, at the same time, greater security as far as the need to protect against pricks is concerned. Summary of the Invention Consequently, the instrument in question relates to a protective instrument of the type described above, as set out in the characterising portion of claim 1. The ends of said rigid body member are at a higher level than other portions of said rigid body member so that said edge between said ends is longitudinally curved in the direction of the concavity of said rigid body member. According to a preferred feature of the invention, said handling and positioning means is fixedly attached to and integrally formed with said rigid body member. The rigid body member is provided with retaining means for inserting said handling and positioning means; said retaining means includes several insertion points for insertion of said handling and positioning means, and said points have fixed or adjustable orientations for the insertion of at least one said handling and positioning means. The handling and positioning means include means for retaining the handling and positioning means in and removing them from the rigid body member. The handle extends in a direction substantially orthogonal to the longitudinal directions of said rigid body member. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the width of the rigid body member extending along the transverse direction is substantially constant in a central portion of the rigid body member between said ends. Brief Description of the Drawings Further advantages and features of the invention will be appreciated from the following description in which, without any limiting nature, preferred embodiments of the invention are disclosed, with mention of the accompanying drawings. The drawings show: Figure 1 is a longitudinal section view of the basic rigid spoonlike body member. Figure 2 is a cross section view on the line II-II of Figure 1. Figure 3 is a perspective view of a spoonlike body member connected to a handle with grip. Figure 4 is a cross section view of the body member of the previous figure. Figure 5 shows a spoonlike body member having an arrangement for retaining a handling and orientation means in form of a handle with grip. Figure 6 is a cross section view on the line IX-IX of Figure 5. Figure 7 is a view, partly in section, of a spoonlike body member provided with an elastically adjustable, disposable functional sheath. Detailed Description of the Invention The present instrument consists of a generally longitudinally spoonlike body member, curved in the direction of the concavity thereof, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, having an oval, elongate concave active surface 2 and a convex rear surface 3 to be associated with handling means, the ends 4 thereof being suitably rounded to avoid sharp points and so that all the edges are not sharp. The material used for the instrument may be stainless steel, without discarding others such as titanium, tungsten, etc. It is the spoonlike body member 1 which will be used for performing the pertinent suturing operations and with a view to achieving the proposed objectives, i.e. to avoid the operator's hands and the immediate viscera, vessels, nerves, tendons, etc. of the patient from being pricked. At the same time it facilitates adequate orientation of the needle while moving through the concealed space between the outer portion of one part of the incision and said viscera or other organs, on being guided by the longitudinal and transverse cavity of the body member to be able to sew the suture stitches with due conformity. Several solutions allowing comfortable holding and orientation are contemplated for the use of the spoonlike body member 1 in question. Thus, pertinent means of a direct or indirect type are disposed on the convex portion 3. With regard to the indirect handling means for the spoonlike body member 1, the holding member consists of a certain type of handle 8, provided with a grip 9 which is fixedly or removably attached to the body member, in all cases without possibility of rotation. In this case, one solution is as shown in Figures 3 and 4, where the said body member 1 is attached laterally to the handle 8. In another case, see Figure 5, the body member is provided with a protuberance 10 on the convex side 3 thereof for coupling with the handle 8, possibly adjustably. The fixed attachment may be by welding and the removable connection may be by way of one or more orifices 11. Where several orifices 11 are available, the handle may be located in the most convenient position in each case. Furthermore, according to Figure 6, the protuberance 10 may have insertion means 12 for the handle 8, with different orientations to be selected in each case. Optionally, all of the protective instrument, or at least the spoonlike body member 1, may be of the disposable type after a single use. Another equivalent solution is to provide the spoonlike body member 1 with a functional sheath 13 adaptable to the active surface and adapted to be disposed of after use, as shown in Figure 7. Although the body member 1 is shown to have a spoonlike form in the drawings, an elbowed shape is also feasible, with equal or unequal arms and with a constant width or otherwise. The spoonlike body member may also be of different sizes. The protective instrument of the invention affords the desirable protection both for the operator, in that it prevents contaminating pricks, and for the patient, in that it prevents possible pricks in the viscera or other parts and the consequent complications because of infection or other causes. At the same time, the function consisting of guiding the needle in the correlative suture stitches is of interest, bearing in mind that the tip of the needle is concealed and operates in an area which is also hidden from sight under the wall of the two parts to be joined. The instrument is used by placing it over the viscera or other organs through the incision made in the wall to be closed by suture. It is pressed against said viscera or other organs and, in general, in the transverse direction of said incision, overlapping the parts to be joined on the inside. Thus, when the needle penetrates through the wall, it meets the concave active surface of the body member, whereby it encounters an obstacle for advancing forward and, furthermore, by the concavity of the body member it will be orientated towards the other part of the wall to be perforated from the unseen inside face. The successive stitches will be made in accordance with the technique advisable in each case. One way is to knot the stitches from one end to the centre third of the length of the suture, leaving the last two stitches untied, after which knotting is started from the other end in the same way as before. Whereby it is possible to remove the spoonlike body member, the stitches of the centre third being then finally knotted.

Claims: A protective instrument for suturing, formed: by a rigid body member (1) and a handling and positioning means (8,9) said rigid body member (1) being elongate and curved in a longitudinal direction and comprising a first surface (2), a corresponding second rear surface (3) and a rounded peripheral edge joining the two surfaces and blunt ends (4), characterised in that the first surface (2) is elongate and concave and the second surface (3) is convex, said body member (1) is longitudinally curved in the direction of the concavity of said first surface (2); and in that said handling and positioning means is attached to any part of said second surface (3) and includes a handle (8) and a grip (9), said handle (8) extending in a direction that is other than said longitudinal direction of said rigid body member (1). The protective instrument of claim 1, characterised in that said ends (4) of said rigid body member (1) are at a higher level than other portions of said rigid body member (1) so that said edge between said ends (4) is longitudinally curved in the direction of the concavity of said rigid body member (1). The protective instrument for suturing of claim 1, characterised in that said rigid body member (1) is spoonlike and includes a major axis defined by a straight, broken or curved line. The protective instrument for suturing of any one of the claims 1 to 3, characterised in that said rigid body member (1) is assymmetrical in at least one of the transverse direction and said longitudinal direction. The protective instrument for suturing of claim 2, characterised in that said handling and positioning means is attached to the convex surface (3) of the rigid body member (1). The protective instrument for suturing of claim 5, characterised in that said handling and positioning means is fixedly attached to and integrally formed with said rigid body member (1). The protective instrument for suturing of claim 5, characterised in that said rigid body member (1) is provided with retaining means (10) for inserting said handling and positioning means. The protective instrument for suturing of claim 7, characterised in that said retaining means (10) includes several insertion points (11) for insertion of said handling and positioning means. The protective instrument for suturing of claim 8, characterised in that said insertion points (11) of said retaining means (10) have fixed or adjustable orientations for the insertion of at least on of said handling and positioning means. The protective instrument for suturing of claim 7, characterised in that said handling and positioning means includes means for retaining and removing said handling and positioning means from said rigid body member (1). The protective instrument for suturing of claim 1, characterised in that said handle (8) extends in a direction substantially orthogonal to said longitudinal direction of said rigid body member (1). The protective instrument for suturing of claim 1, characterised in that the width of said rigid body member (1) extending along the transverse direction is substantially constant in a central portion of said rigid body member (1) between said ends (4).

Inventors: BOTET DEL CASTILLO JAVIER, BOTET DEL CASTILLO, JAVIER
Applicants: BOTET DEL CASTILLO JAVIER, BOTET DEL CASTILLO, JAVIER
Application year: 1991
Main classification: A61B17
IPC codes: A61B17, A61F13, D05B91, A61B19