Patent ID: 8070680

Claim:
Apparatus for performing a transgastric procedure via the mouth and digestive tract of a patient, said apparatus comprising an elongated tubular access device having a proximal end, a distal end and a wall extending between said ends; a first lumen extending along the access device, said first lumen having an open proximal end and an opening in said wall near said distal end; an expandable sealing device on the outside of said access device and extending above and below said opening; an expander extending along said access device for expanding said sealing means so that when the access device is inserted into said tract and the sealing device expanded, the portion of the tract opposite said opening is isolated from the remainder of the tract above and below the opening, and further including a side access unit comprising elongated flexible coaxial inner and outer tubes said tubes having proximal and distal ends and being movable relatively in the axial direction and said inner tube having at least one lumen extending between said ends; a first clamping device mounted to the distal end of the outer tube; a second clamping device mounted to the distal end of the inner tube, and a mechanism adjacent to the proximal ends of said tubes for moving said tubes relatively so as to vary the axial spacing of said first and second clamping devices.