Patent ID: 8322588

Claim:
A method for joining a pair of opposed tissues, the method comprising the steps of: positioning a surgical stapling apparatus within a surgical site, the surgical stapling apparatus including: a staple cartridge assembly having a plurality of staple retaining slots and a surgical staple in each of the staple retaining slots; an anvil head assembly configured to support an anvil plate thereon, the anvil plate defining a plurality of staple forming pockets in registration with the staple retaining slots, wherein a capsule containing a wound treatment material has been previously placed within each of the plurality of staple forming pockets, wherein the capsule is fixedly contained within the plurality of staple forming pockets; and a wound treatment material disposed within each of the plurality of staple retaining slots of the staple cartridge assembly, wherein the wound treatment material is at least one of an adhesive, a sealant, a hemostat and a medicament; approximating the pair of opposed tissues to be joined such that the pair of opposed tissues are positioned between the staple cartridge assembly and the anvil head assembly; and firing the surgical stapling apparatus such that a quantity of the wound treatment material is dispensed onto a portion of tissue surrounding a backspan of the staples.